The Brooklyn College men’s basketball team topped York College, 79-68, on Wednesday evening to advance to its first CUNY Athletic Conference championship since 1978.
Queens native Richard Jean-Baptiste led Brooklyn College (22-5) with 26 points and he also grabbed a team-high nine rebounds.
After a first half that went neck-and-neck on the scoreboard, Brooklyn tightened up its defense, which allowed York to shoot 60 percent from the field in the opening half. Clutch shots from Marlon Thornton and big free throws down the stretch from Jean-Baptiste secured Brooklyn College’s first title game berth in more than 30 years.
Baruch 72, Lehman College 64:
Lehman had the momentum and the lead late in the second half, until a 4-point play from Jonathan DeJesus put Baruch up, 49-48. Both teams went into the extra session knotted at 55. It was then that Dietz took over, as the Queens native scored Baruch’s first eight points in the overtime session.
Along with Dietz’s crucial baskets in overtime, Chris Beauchamp had 22 points, and center Steven Bader scored 14 points and grabbed 15 rebounds to contribute to Baruch’s semifinal victory. Scotty Nimmons led Lehman with 17 points in the loss.
