BROOKLYN, N.Y. – The LIU Brooklyn men's basketball team closed out the 2016 calendar year in style Saturday evening in the Steinberg Wellness Center, beating Northeast Conference opponent Bryant, 74-63. With the win, the Blackbirds (8-7, 1-1 NEC) snapped a four-game losing skid, while Bryant moves to 3-11 overall, and 0-2 in NEC action.
 
Senior Jerome Frink led the Blackbirds in the victory, with 23 points, 15 rebounds, four blocks and two steals. Freshman Jashaun Aogosto was one assist away from a double-double, with 17 points and nine assists.
 
The game was a back-and-forth affair early on, as the two teams would trade baskets for the first ten minutes of the half. The score would be tied three separate times, and both teams held the lead more than once. Bryant used a three-pointer from Adam Grant to take the lead at 11:23, 20-18.  But the Blackbirds used long distance shooting to distance themselves from the Bulldogs. Freshmen Jashaun Agosto and Ashtyn Bradley hit back-to-back three pointers as sparks that started a 10-o run for LIU. Frink had a dunk at 8:25 to cap the scoring spree, which put the home team up eight, 28-20.
 
Led by Frink's shooting, the Blackbirds would close the first half on another scoring spree, out-pacing the Bulldogs, 15-4. Sophomore Julius van Sauers capped the run for LIU this time, hitting a three pointer to end the first half with the Blackbirds up, 46-29.
 
Bryant would use eight straight points from Nisre Zouzoua early in the second half to close the lead to 11, 48-37 at 17:09. But LIU wouldn't let the visitors get any closer. Just two minutes later, the Blackbirds scored nine unanswered points, including one of Frink's three treys, to take their widest lead of the evening, 60-41. The cushion allowed the Blackbirds to breathe, and LIU would hold on to the lead for the remainder of the period. The Bulldogs had a late 9-2 run, but were only able to cut the gap to 11 once more, as LIU took the win, 74-63.
 
BLACKBIRD BITS
- Bryant had three players in double figures, led by Nisre Zouzoua with a game-high 23 points. Adam Grant added 12, while Marcel Pettway had 10.
- Senior Jerome Frink was in fine form for LIU, as he had 23 points, 15 rebounds, four blocks two steals.
- Freshman Jashaun Agosto was near perfect for LIU after missing one game due to injury. He  had 17 points and nine assists, going 8-for-8 from the free throw line. More impressively, however, the point guard had zero turnovers in 35 minutes of play, for a 99.0 assists to turnover ratio.  
- Senior Iverson Fleming added 13 points in the win, while sophomore Julius van Sauers chipped in seven points and seven rebounds.
- Up next, the Blackbirds start the 2017 year by hitting the road once more, to take on the Pennsylvania contingent of the Northeast Conference. LIU will travel to Moon Township to take on Robert Morris, Thursday, January 5 at 7 p.m., before heading to Loretto, Pa., to square off with Saint Francis U., Saturday, January 7 at 4 p.m.