NEW YORK--- (www.YORKATHLETICS.com) York College men's basketball returned to home hardwood Friday for a CUNYAC meeting against the Medgar Evers College Cougars (5-15, 3-6 CUNYAC). Despite outscoring the visitors by 10 points in the second half, the Cardinals were unable to push past the Cougars in a 63-58 decision inside York College Gymnasium. 

How it Happened

• Level at five, Medgar Evers went on a prolonged 12-0 burst to lead 17-5 with 11:13 remaining in the first half.
• A further 10-3 spurt gave the Cougars a 17-point advantage (25-8) at the 7:51 mark. 
• Jackson Bartley's jumper at 2:54 put the cushion at a game-high 19-points (30-11).
• Josh Beaston's layup with five seconds left for the Cougars sealed a 34-19 first half. 
• Both teams played at an even playing field the first 7:41 of the second period, as Medgar Evers maintained a 15-point lead (45-30).
• Consecutive triples from Kai Holland trimmed York's deficit to single digits (45-36).
• Elie Mondelus' three-pointer got it to within five points (47-42) at the 9:14 point of the second period.
• Treading water, two freebies by Bryan Godette got the Cardinals within four points (53-49) with 4:18 remaining.
• Five straight points from Andre Evans Jr. pushed Medgar Evers' edge to nine (58-49).
• Trailing by nine with 19 seconds on the clock, two quickfire triples from Aidony Nivar made it a one-possession game (61-58) with three seconds left.
• Nicholas Bocharov closed out a 63-58 decision with two free throws.

Leading the Cardinals

• Michael Litchfield paced the squad with 17 points (6-of-11 FG, 3-of-7 3FG, 2-of-4 FT). 
• Nivar added 12 points (5-of-8 FG, 2-of-4 3FG) and grabbed five rebounds.
• Godette chipped in defensively with a team-best two steals and two blocks. 
• Benjamin Grant dished out a game-leading five dimes off the bench.

For Medgar Evers

• Evans Jr. netted a game-best 19 points (6-of-12 FG, 6-of-6 FT) to go along with six rebounds and three steals. 
• Michael Perez was the squad's second-highest scorer with nine points.
• Ahmed Toure contributed seven points and hauled in a game-high 17 rebounds. 
• Ryan Panagakos authored a team-leading four assists.

Inside the Box Score
The Cardinals shot 37.7 percent (20-of-53) from deep, 32 percent (8-of-25) from downtown and 62.5 percent (10-of-16) from the charity stripe. Medgar Evers connected on 34.5 percent (20-of-58), netted four out of 20 triples and made 19 clutch free throws. Inside, the Cougars held the edge in rebounds (40-29), points in the paint (30-20), and second-chance scoring (21-4). Meanwhile, York held a margin in assists (16-14), points off turnovers (23-21), and fast break points (24-14).

Up Next
The Cardinals (2-16, 0-9 CUNYAC) hit the road Tuesday (Feb. 4) for a CUNYAC encounter against the City College of New York Beavers (7-8, 2-6 CUNYAC) starting at 7 p.m. inside Nat Holman Gymnasium.

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