The men's basketball team fell to Hunter College, 86-80, on Friday night at the Doghouse. The Bloodhounds drop to 3-18 and 2-10 in the CUNY Athletic Conference. The Hawks improve to 3-18 overall and 3-9 in CUNYAC. 

Freshman Essien Epps led John Jay with 28 points, five assists, and three rebounds. Junior Kiernan Hayes recorded 10 points and seven rebounds. Junior Jesse Higgins added 12 points, a team-high six assists, a team-high three steals, and three rebounds. Junior Geno Ware came off the bench and delivered 10 points, six rebounds, and two assists. Junior Ronald Merriwether and freshman Luciano Cruz-Fernandez combined for 16 points and seven rebounds. 

Hunter opened on a 5-0 run but the Bloodhounds tied the game. With the Bloodhounds trailing 9-8, the Hawks went on a 14-4 run to lead by 11 with 13:18 left in the first half. John Jay responded on a 10-0 run to cut the deficit to one. With 5:15 on the clock, the score was tied 34-34. Less than two minutes later, the visitors took a seven-point advantage. The Bloodhounds closed the half on a 11-3 run to lead 46-45 heading into halftime. 

The Hawks tied the game in their first possession but John Jay scored seven straight points to go up 55-48. Two minutes later, the Bloodhounds went on an 8-0 run to lead 63-51 with 12:39 remaining. John Jay's largest lead of the game came with 7:20 on the clock when the Bloodhounds were up by 13. The Hawks stormed back on a 19-2 run to give them a 74-70 advantage. The guests would go on to win by a final score of 86-80. 

John Jay went 26-for-60 (43.3%) from the field, 9-for-21 (42.9%) from behind the arc, and 19-for-24 (79.2%) from the free-throw line. 

The Bloodhounds host Baruch College on Tuesday, February 2, for a conference game at 8:00 pm.