BROOKLYN, N.Y. – The LIU Brooklyn men's basketball team downed the lone undefeated team remaining in the Northeast Conference Saturday afternoon. The Blackbirds beat previously unbeaten Robert Morris, 80-73, to even their league record at 2-2 this season, while the Colonials move to 3-1. The game was close throughout, with 11 lead changes.
LIU was led by three players in double digits: senior
Raiquan Clark (24 points), junior
Jashaun Agosto (21 points, nine rebounds) and sophomore
Ty Flowers (16 points, eight rebounds, three blocks).
The Colonials rode their four game winning streak into the first minutes of action, jumping out to a 13-9 lead over the Blackbirds. But junior
Jashaun Agosto would hit a layup at 12:30 that sparked a 13-4 run for LIU. Over the next three minutes, Agosto,
Eral Penn, Clark and Flowers would all score in a run that would give the Blackbirds a 22-17 lead with 10:38 to play. Robert Morris battled back, using a 5-0 run that would cut the gap to just one point, and then back-to-back three pointers would give the Colonials back the lead, 34-31 with three minutes left to play in the first half. Despite a three-pointer from Clark as the buzzer sounded, Robert Morris
After RMU would score a quick basket to start the second half, LIU went on a 10-0 run that spanned nearly three minutes, and gave them back the lead, 47-43. But the Colonials would answer with a quick run of their own, scoring seven unanswered points to go on top, 50-47.
Over the next four minutes, however, the Blackbirds scored 11 unanswered points. Sparked by a traditional three-point play from Clark, Flowers and junior
Julian Batts would hit back to back threes, and a layup from Agosto at 9:43 made it 58-50 in favor of the home team. The Colonials stayed within striking distance, coming within five points with just over six minutes left, but LIU would widen the lead back up to 12, 73-61, to give them a buffer in the final two minutes of action. RM would hit two big threes in the final minute of play, but LIU's lead proved too much to overcome, and the Blackbirds took the win, 80-73.
NOTES FROM THE NEST
- With the win, LIU evens its record to 8-8 overall and 2-2 in the NEC, while RMU moves to 8-9 and 3-1 in the conference.
- Senior Raiquan Clark led LIU with 24 points, shooting 8-for-12 from the field, 2-for-3 from three, and 6-for-9 from the free throw line. He also had six rebounds and three steals.
- Junior Jashaun Agosto finished one assist shy of a double double with 21 points and nine assists. He shot 8-for-10 from the field, with two rebounds.
- Sophomore Ty Flowers had 16 points and eight rebounds, along with three blocks, two steals and two assists. Junior Julian Batts added eight points and three rebounds.
- Josh Wiliams and Charles Bain led Robert Morris, with 20 and 17 points respectively.
- Up next, the Blackbirds have an unusual six-day break before they resume NEC action. Next week, LIU will switch to a Saturday-Monday schedule instead of the normal Thursday-Saturday, in part because of LIU's ESPN3 doubleheader on Monday, January 21st. The Blackbirds resume NEC action hosting Fairleigh Dickinson, Saturday, January 19 at 4:30 p.m.