Box Score Archived Video

BRONXVILLE, N.Y.-Junior Mat Gerak (Monroe, Conn./Masuk) matched his career high and led the Gryphons with 23 points, as Sarah Lawrence College men's basketball defeated Skyline rival Mount Saint Mary College, 76-56, at Noyes Court at Campbell Sports Center on Thursday. The 20-point margin of victory is SLC's largest over an NCAA Division III opponent.

IN SHORT
Sarah Lawrence (5-18, 2-16 Skyline) def. Mount Saint Mary (7-15, 5-12 Skyline), 76-56.

GAME FLOW
MSMC jumped out to an early lead after scoring the first four points, but Gryphon captain Graham Gilleran (San Francisco, Calif./Archbishop Riordan) scored six quick points to help SLC take an 8-6 edge. MSMC tied the game at 8-8 before the Green and White took the lead for good. Gerak made back-to-back layups to round out a 10-0 run that gave the Gryphons a 23-12 advantage after nine minutes. A Gilleran three-pointer in the final minute of the period gave SLC a comfortable 20-point lead, 41-21, and SLC led at the half 42-23.

In the second half, the Gryphons rattled off a 16-4 run that ate eight minutes off the clock and left the Green and White on top, 58-27. The Knights countered with an 11-2 run of their own, but with seven minutes to play, SLC's 60-38 lead was nearly insurmountable. The pace slowed in the final minutes as the teams scored 21 points from the free-throw line over the last seven minutes. MSMC closed the gap to less than 20 in the final minute, but the Gryphons cruised to their biggest win ever over a Division III program.

FROM DOWNTOWN
Three-point shooting played a major difference in the game. The Knights were held without a trey on four attempts in the first half, and MSMC finished 1 for 15 from three-point territory. The one made three-pointer is the fewest a Division III opponent has scored against the Gryphons since Merchant Marine on Nov. 16, 2013. For their part, the Gryphons shot a respectable 8 for 24 (.333) on three-point attempts in Thursday's win.

FOR THE GRYPHONS
Gerak's 23 points came on 9-for-18 shooting and five successful free throw attempts taken in the final six minutes. Gilleran finished with 16 points and four blocks, reaching 250 points for the season and 100 blocks for his career.

Rookie Gabe Eng (Brooklyn, N.Y./The Beacon School) scored 13 points, and first year Austin Jones (Upper Marlboro, Md./Flint Hill School) scored 12 points with game-highs of nine rebounds and six assists. Rookie Parker Hagmaier (Oakland, Calif./Bishop O'Dowd) led SLC with seven rebounds, while sophomore Malin Segal (Wenham, Mass./Concord Academy) had four points, five rebounds and three assists.

FOR THE KNIGHTS
Forwards Gerard Nocera and T.J. Patsalos scored 12 points apiece. Daniel Wolff scored seven points and led his team with eight rebounds.

UP NEXT
Sarah Lawrence plays its final home game of the season on Wednesday. The Gryphons host College of Mount Saint Vincent at 7 p.m. SLC concludes the season at Maritime College on Saturday, Feb. 20.