ALBANY, N.Y. (NEWS10) — The College of Saint Rose made a huge first-half charge to overcome a 12-point deficit only to have visiting Molloy turn the tables late in the ballgame that allowed the Lions to upend the Golden Knights 79-76 tonight in Nolan Gymnasium.
Saint Rose (2-2) outscored visiting Molloy 17-4 throughout the final 6:48 of the first period that transformed a 30-18 deficit into a one-point, 35-34, halftime lead. The Golden Knights eventually expanded their advantage to six, 69-63, with 4:35 remaining in the ballgame.
Molloy, which was out front for 65.3% of the contest that featured 12 lead changes and four deadlocks, then outscored Saint Rose 9-0 during the final 1:27 to prevent its hosts from winning a third straight. The Lions (3-5) helped themselves by coming up with a pair of steals and forcing the Golden Knights to miss a pair looks from the floor throughout the decisive spurt.
Sophomore forward Josh McGettigan tossed in 20 points, thanks in part to 4-for-6 shooting from the arc, and hauled in six boards to lead Saint Rose. Sophomore swing Cartier Bowman came off the bench to register of “double-double” of 17 points and 11 boards in just 23 minutes, while Eric Fleming scored 13 points behind a 5-for-5 shooting night.
Freshman guard Darren Fergus paced Molloy with 21 points.
Looking ahead, the Golden Knights are scheduled to travel to Springfield for a 5:00 pm meeting at American International on Friday. The two teams are then set to conclude the back-to-back series at Saint Rose on Saturday at 4:00 pm. Meanwhile, Molloy is scheduled to host Roberts Wesleyan this Saturday and Sunday.
Notes: Tonight marked only the second Molloy win in the 25 games series that dates back to 1989…Saint Rose owns a +10.0 rebounding margin in its two victories, but is -2.5 in its pair of setbacks this year…Fleming has gone 14-for-14 from the floor throughout the last two games…Five players are averaging double-figures scoring with freshman forward Shane O’Dell leading the way at 17.3 points per game…Ten underclassmen are listed on the Golden Knights 14-player roster.
