Garden City, N.Y. -- A six-point halftime deficit thanks to a hot-shooting Saint Anselm team proved to be a deciding margin against the Adelphi University men's basketball team, as the Panthers were unable to claw back in the second half to the tune of an 88-76 defeat.

In what was a balanced night offensively for both clubs, the Panthers (14-7, 7-6 NE10) had five players score in double figures, including four starters. Michael Coffey sank 19 points to lead all Adelphi scorers, while Conor McGuinness sank four three-pointers en route to 14 points. Jack Laffey chipped in 13, while Manny Suarez and Austin Beech each added 12, with Suarez pulling down a team-high 10 rebounds for a double-double. Tim Guers powered the visiting Hawks (11-6, 7-6 NE10) with 28 points and 17 rebounds, while Taylor Fortin added 23. 

Over the first five minutes of the game, Suarez and Laffey combined to score 11 points to put the Panthers up four, 11-7, out of the first media timeout. , However, the Hawks slowly began the find footing in the contest from the perimeter, and a 14-0 run over four-plus minutes at the midway point of the half stamped Saint Anselm's authority on the contest, opening up a 31-18 lead on a Fortin made three with just over seven minutes on the clock. 

In what was a shooting battle throughout, the Panthers crept to within four on three straight buckets from Coffey, Beech and Laffey, to trail at 42-38 with 2:05 remaining. Making two of the half's final three buckets, the Hawks took a six-point lead into the locker room, 46-40. 

The Hawks held the lead for the duration of the second half, but the Panthers pressed early to make it a one-possession game on two occasions. An 8-5 spurt to start the second half, capped by a McGuinness triple, saw the lead shrink to 51-48, while twice more the gap stood at three points in the later minutes with McGuinness draining another three to make it a 56-53 game with 15:01 remaining.

From there, the Hawks posted another half-defining period, sprinting out on a 20-8 run to restore some distance at 77-61 with 7:18 remaining. At that point, the Brown and Gold were unable to pull closer than nine for the remainder of the game, which they did twice thanks to 7-0 and 8-4 scoring spurts late in the game.

The Panthers look to rebound on Saturday, Jan. 28 when they travel to Assumption College for a 3:30 pm NE10 contest.

NOTES
- The Hawks' defense held the Panthers to their lowest-scoring output since December, in a 70-64 setback at Le Moyne.
- Coffey currently sits fifth in the NE10 in scoring at 21 points per game.

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About Adelphi Athletics:
Adelphi University joined the Northeast-10 Conference in the fall of 2009 and in the past seven seasons, has collected 20 regular season conference titles, 24 tournament championships, 29 individual crowns and captured the Northeast-10 Presidents' Cup three times (2013, 2014, and 2016), while winning five NCAA Division II National Championships.

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