Box Score

LEHMBB LEHMBB 17-8, 11-3 CUNY

Medgar Evers College MEDGARM 5-20, 1-13 CUNY

LEHMBB LEHMBB

17-8, 11-3 CUNY

Final

Feb. 14, 2023

Medgar Evers College MEDGARM

5-20, 1-13 CUNY

Score By Periods
Team	1	2	F
LEHMBB LEHMBB	49	49	98
Medgar Evers College MEDGARM	24	28	52

Game Recap: Men's Basketball | 2/15/2023 9:58:00 AM

Emotions run high as Cougars honor four graduating seniors prior to season's final game

The Medgar Evers College men's basketball team wrapped up its 2022-2023 campaign on Tuesday evening, falling to the Lehman College Lightning by a score of 98-52. The game took place at the Cougars Cave in Brooklyn, NY. With the loss, the Cougars finalized their year at 5-20 (1-13 CUNYAC), while the Lightning finished its regular season at 17-8 (11-3 CUNYAC) and will now head to the CUNYAC tournament.

Prior to the game, the Medgar Evers Department of Athletics took a few moments to honor graduating seniors Mousa Sinera, Dimitri Weeks, Dante Simmons, and Omar Bassiouni in a special ceremony. Assistant coach Brad Oringer spoke glowingly about each standout's accomplishments both on the court and in the classroom. Director of Athletics Chetara Murphy, and Head Coach Brian Nigro presented each of the four aforementioned seniors with commemorative action shot posters in a show of appreciation of their dedication to the program during their tenures at the institution. The student-athletes posed for photos with their teammates, family members, and friends, before saluting the crowd at the Cougars Cave in what was an emotional scene.

Veteran Dante Simmons closed out his two-year tenure as a Cougar by scoring a game-high 17 points (5-6 FT). He also collected seven rebounds, dished two assists, and tallied two steals. Mousa Sinera added one more double-double to his fantastic resume, scoring 11 points and snatching a game-16 rebounds. Those 16 boards boosted his finalized career total to 1,050 caroms. Dimitri Weeks, who kissed the mid-court logo when he was subbed out for the final time with 3:44 remaining, contributed five points, and Omar Bassiouni converted on his first field goal of the year, knocking down a three-point shot in the second half.

Pacing the balanced Lightning was Marquese Johnson, as he scored a team-high 14 points, connecting on six of his eight attempts from the floor, including both of his attempts from long range. Will Feldman posted a double-double with 13 points and 10 assists, and Elijah Avilla netted 11 points, grabbed three boards, and tallied two steals. Finally, it was Jayden Stephens and Mo Idrissou scoring 10 points apiece.

Lehman raced out to an early 6-0 advantage in the opening 2:33 of action, but the Cougars put together a 10-4 run over the ensuing 2:45 to tie the game. All 10 of those Medgar Evers points came courtesy of Simmons, who nailed a pair of treys, converted a layup, and connected on a pair of freebees.

Later, the Lightning led 15-10, when Joshua Jean Pierre would drill a triple to slice the Cougars' deficit to two (15-13). Lehman would take control of the game at this juncture, going on an 11-0 run over a span of 4:37 to take a 26-13 advantage. Gradually building their lead, the Lightning spent the remainder of the half outscoring the hosts 23-12 to take a commanding 49-24 edge into the locker room at halftime.

Lehman spent the opening 4:40 of the second half continuing to add to their lead, as the Lightning notched the first 13 points of the session to take a 62-24 lead.

Later, when the game dipped inside the five minute mark, and Lehman had the game well in hand, Medgar Evers Head Coach Brian Nigro began removing his seniors from the contest at different whistles, allowing each of them to get a standing ovation and an embrace from the Cougars faithful. Bassiouni, who appeared to be fighting back emotions, was the first to come out. The reserved Simmons was next, followed by Weeks and Sinera. Weeks soaked up the moment, saluting the crowd and thanking the fans, and Sinera, who many believe is a student-athlete who exemplifies the heart and grit of Medgar Evers students, embraced the crowd, the officials, his opponents, and his bench, as they all showered him with equal adoration and respect.

For the evening, Lehman College connected on 37 of its 80 shots (46.3 percent), while the Cougars connected on just 20.5 percent of their attempts (16-78). The Lightning dominated the glass, snatching 64 rebounds while the hosts pulled down 49, and Lehman dished 23 assists to Medgar Evers' eight. The Lightning held a slim 14-10 edge in the steals category, while also winning the turnover battle, committing 18 while the Cougars had 24.

Despite the Cougars' season coming to a close, there were still many positives to look back on. Senior Mousa Sinera, who was tabbed a CUNYAC Second Team All-Star, finalized his career with 1,050 rebounds, putting him second on the school's all-time boards list. He also set a new NCAA Division III record for rebounds in a single game with 43 against Hunter College back on January 31, 2023, and held many eye-opening NCAA Divison III rankings (2nd in total rebounds, 2nd in rebounds per game, fourth in defensive rebounds per contest, and sixth in offensive rebounds per evening). Freshman Jacob Green, who averaged more than any other rookie in CUNYAC, was tabbed the CUNYAC Rookie of the Year, finalizing his season with a team-leading 50 treys, while adding 44 assists. Andre Evans Jr. scored 254 points, boosting his career total to 574, and putting him well on pace to be just the 10th member in school history to reach the 1,000 point mark. Veteran Joshua Jean Pierre increased his averages from 4.9 PPG and 4.6 RPG in 2021-2022, to 8.9 PPG and 5.2 RPG this season, and many of the rookies on the squad, including Richar Frias and Nicholas Bocharov, showed promise throughout the year.

Head Coach Brian Nigro and his staff will get back to work immediately, as they'll look to add some fresh talent to an already solid existing foundation of players ahead of what could be a very promising and exciting 2023-2024 campaign!

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