BRONXVILLE, N.Y.- A combined 34 points from Lucas Murray and Justin DiFabio helped lead the Sarah Lawrence men's basketball team to victory over Purchase College by a score of 74-68 on Saturday afternoon. This victory brings Sarah Lawrence to 2-2 in Skyline play as their in-conference schedule begins to ramp up. 

By the Numbers

• DiFabio led the way offensively for Sarah Lawrence, scoring 18 points and shooting 44.4% from deep
• Murray was close behind with 16 points of his own to go with his team-high eight rebounds and zero turnovers
• Eamon Kelly and Chris Torres also scored double-digit points for Sarah Lawrence, tallying 13 and 10 respectively

How it Happened

The first half of play saw both teams remain competitive, with an early 17-6 lead for Sarah Lawrence being erased by Purchase and bringing the score to 19-16 with just over nine minutes remaining in the half. After back-to-back layups by Murray and Torres, the Gryphons would bring their lead back to seven, but an answer from deep by Purchase's Kamar Thomas would eliminate the cushion built over the past two possessions. As the game clock ticked under six minutes, the Gryphons found themselves with just a one point lead following a free-throw by Josiah Nelson of Purchase. The following Sarah Lawrence possession would inject energy into the entire gymnasium as a two-handed dunk from Murray would catalyze a run that would remain throughout the final six minutes and allow the Gryphons to bring a seven-point lead into halftime.

While the Gryphons ended the first half with momentum, it would only be a preview of how they would start the second half. The team would go on a 33-9 run over the first nine minutes of second-half play to build a 21 point lead with eleven minutes remaining in the game. Three minutes later, after trading baskets, the Gryphons would remain in the lead with an 18-point cushion and appeared to be securely positioned to hold on for the remainder of the contest. A Josiah Nelson jump shot with 8:07 remaining would prove to be the beginning of a 17-7 run that would bring the Sarah Lawrence lead down to single digits with 1:59 remaining in the game. Strong free-throw shooting by the Panthers would allow them to cut the lead down to two possessions, as they found themselves trailing 69-64 with 36 seconds on the clock. Three made free-throw attempts within the final 10 seconds by Torres sealed the game for Sarah Lawrence and as the final buzzer sounded, the Gryphons found themselves victorious by a score of 74-68.

Up Next

The Gryphons (4-9, Skyline 2-2) will next take on Maritime on Wednesday January 11th at 7:00 p.m. in Throggs Neck, N.Y. and will follow that up with another road game at St. Joseph's College Long Island on Saturday January 14th with tip-off scheduled for 1:00 p.m. EDT