FITTS AND PALMER EARN 20 POINTS EACH AS MEN’S BASKETBALL DOWNS CONCORDIA, 81-73

Box Score vs. Concordia - February 4, 2009

ROCKVILLE CENTRE, N.Y. (Feb. 4, 2009) - Junior forward Girard Fitts (Uniondale, N.Y.) and junior guard Carl Palmer (Brooklyn, N.Y.) had a game-high 20 points apiece to push the Molloy College men's basketball team to an 81-73 win over Concordia College on Wednesday in Rockville Centre, N.Y. With the decision, the Lions have won four in a row and improved to 7-13 overall. They are also 6-5 against East Coast Conference opposition.

Trailing 14-13 with just over 14 minutes remaining in the opening half, the Lions drew up a 14-2 run over a three-plus minute stretch to take a 27-16 lead with 9:48 left. Fitts registered 10 of the points off of two trifectas and two jays. Junior forward Ian Thomas-Minor (Brooklyn, N.Y.) and sophomore forward Brian Hutchinson (Elmont, N.Y.) put up a lay-up each as well.

Molloy continued to hold that lead at the 6:08 mark (33-22). After that, Concordia (5-17, 3-8 ECC) went on to out-score the opposition 15-5 in the next four minutes of play to knot things up at 37-all. In the process, the Clippers sported a 7-0 spurt during a period of 1:33 to cut the deficit to 33-29. Senior forward/center Dan Cunningham (Ulster Park, N.Y.) kicked things off with two free throws. Junior guard/forward Troy Young (Largo, Md.) capped off the burst with a three.

Concordia eventually headed into the locker room up 41-39 off of a jumper by junior guard Kenny Gaskins (Bronx, N.Y.) with 56 seconds to go.

Following a lay-up by Clippers' freshman center Daniel Olsen (Stafford, Conn.), which opened up the latter half, the Lions notched a 12-2 streak in a time of 4:22 to grab back the advantage at 51-45. Palmer led the way with seven points on a three-ball, jumper and lay-up. Free throws had also been made during the run by Fitts and Hutchinson.

From that point on, Concordia was unable to take back the lead as Molloy extended the margin to double digits six different times. The largest that the Lions held at one point was 13 points off of a three by junior guard Chris Manning (Queens, N.Y.) from the left corner on a Palmer pass.

Molloy shot 50.9 percent (29-for-57) from the field, 33.3 percent (4-for-12) from downtown and 70.4 percent (19-for-27) from the charity stripe. Hutchinson amassed 15 points and 12 rebounds for his ninth double-double of the season. Freshman forward Matt Wafula (Harlem, N.Y.) added 11 points in 18 minutes off the bench. He also crashed the glass for four rebounds and rejected one block.

Manning totaled eight assists, five points, three steals and three rebounds. Junior guard Michael Johnson (Jamaica, N.Y.) registered seven assists, three points, three rebounds and one steal. Thomas-Minor finished with five points, four rebounds, two assists and one steal.

As for Concordia, it was 25-of-78 (32.1 percent) from the floor, 7-of-22 (31.8 percent) from beyond the arc and 16-of-27 (59.3 percent) from the foul line. Sophomore guard/forward Samuel Batista (Carolina, Puerto Rico) tallied a team-best 18 points. He also gathered six rebounds, two assists and two steals. Gaskins posted 15 points, four assists and four steals.

Cunningham contributed a double-double performance after raking in 16 rebounds and 10 points. He also swiped three steals, swatted away two blocks and dished out a pair of assists. Young accumulated 16 points, six rebounds and two steals. Olsen checked in with nine rebounds, seven points and two blocks. Sophomore forward/center William Eason (Springfield, Mass.) chipped in with four points and three rebounds.

Head Coach Charlie Marquardt and the Lions return to action this Saturday when they face off with the University of Bridgeport at Hubbell Gymnasium in Bridgeport, Conn. Tip-off is slated for 3 p.m.