Box Score
New York, N.Y.— Three John Jay players recorded double-doubles in a thrilling win against Lehman on Thursday night and head coach
DeVernie Winston earned his first NCAA coaching win as the Bloodhounds, behind a 21-2 run to close out the first half, defeated the Lightning 69-66 in front of a vast crowd of 500 plus at the Doghouse on Thursday evening for homecoming.
Vaughn Mason (Bronx, NY, Alfred E. Smith) knocked in a team-high 14 points and had 11 rebounds, while
Daniel Desir (Jamaica, NY, Jamaica) had 12 points and 12 rebounds.
Chris Jaeger (Hicksville, NY, Hicksville) chipped in with 12 points and 10 rebounds for John Jay who improved to 1-4 (1-1 CUNYAC) on the season.
“It was great to get my first NCAA win in this kind of style in front of a crowd like that tonight,” said Winston. “It was a total team effort by everyone. The guys all stepped up and did great.”
Lehman took control of the game in the early stages leading from the opening tap. And leading by two at 16-14 with 11:24 to go, the Lightning went on a 15-1 run to take a commanding 31-15 lead with 6:26 remaining.
But John Jay responded immediately and closed out the half on a 21-2 game-changing run to take the lead 36-33 at halftime.
The run started when Desir connected on a continuation three pointer and the run expanded from there.
Ryan Olsen (Huntington, NY, St. John the Baptist), who had six points on the night, gave John Jay the lead for the first time with 48 seconds remaining on a fast break lay-up that started after a block on the other end by
Eddie Sanford (Alexandria, LA, Bossier). Olsen scored again moments later to end the first half scoring with another lay-up on a fast-break with eight seconds to go as the roof of the Doghouse nearly exploded because of the exuberant cheering by the John Jay fans.
The Bloodhounds then opened play in the second half on a 5-0 spurt to cap a 26-2 overall run and go up by eight at 41-33 with less than a minute gone by.
David Williams (Jamaica, NY, Martin Luther King) who had eight points and five assists in the contest capped the run on a continuation three pointer.
But Lehman never went away and stayed within striking range. The Lightning got the Bloodhound lead down to one on three occasions in the second half before Lehman took its first lead of the second half when they grabbed a 59-58 lead with 3:32 to go.
John Jay came right back and reclaimed the lead on the next trip down court after an alley-oop dunk by Mason off a Williams feed with 3:15 to go as the packed Doghouse once again exploded.
Lehman took another lead and led by as much as three late in the contest. The Lightning were up 63-60 with 2:09 to play before John Jay ultimately closed out the final two minutes outscoring the opponents 6-0.
Mason connected on another field goal from under the basket off a Williams pass with 1:52 left. Then John Jay grabbed the lead when Jaeger found Desir for a lay-up with 35 seconds to go.
Then a ball control foul by Lehman gave John Jay the possession with the shot clock off causing Lehman to foul. Williams, who was 4-for-5 from the line, connected on both. Then a poor inbounds pass by Lehman gave John Jay the ball back with seven seconds remaining. Another Lehman foul sent Mason to the line where he connected on both of his foul shots and John Jay was up by five.
A three point field goal by Lehman with three second left got them to within two, but Williams made one of two from the line with 1.5 seconds to go before Lehman, with no time outs remaining, threw up a prayer at the buzzer that was unanswered to secure the John Jay win.
Lehman was led by
Perry Daniel with 22 points, while
Xavier Garvin had 14.
With his 14 points tonight, Mason upped his career total to 942, leaving him just 58 shy of 1,000.
John Jay returns to action on Sat. Dec. 5 for a home contest against Connecticut College at 3 p.m.
