Garden City, N.Y. - The Adelphi University men's basketball team opened the 2020 campaign with a non-league victory over Mercy College Wednesday evening, capturing an 86-70 win inside the Center for Recreation and Sports to extend their win streak to five. 

Adelphi (10-3) was led by Ronnie Silva, who accounted for a game-high tying 18 points while adding seven rebounds as the team saw four more reach double-digit scoring. Austin Beech and Spencer Foley combined for 12 field goals as the latter knocked down five three-pointers on seven attempts for 16 points. Rookie Andrew Delaney had a career night, posting 11 points on 4-for-8 shooting from the field which included three makes from beyond the arc. 

The home team rattled off nine straight points to take an 11-3 lead with 15:57 left in the opener and managed to extend its lead to 11, 26-15, with 9:33 remaining in the first half, courtesy of a Foley tre. The Mavericks (3-10) battled back with a 12-4 run and a Garrett Kirkland four-point play at the 1:39 mark knotted the game at 38-38. Foley drained one more three-pointer to give the hosts the lead as they broke for halftime. 

Coming out of the break Mercy was within three at 51-48, but the Panthers responded with a 15-0 run to build a 66-48 lead with ten minutes left. Adelphi led by double figures for the remainder of the game to secure the win.

The team returns to action on Saturday, January 4 when they host the University of New Haven. The league and in-division matchup kicks off the remainder of the NE10 schedule for the Panthers, who will tip off with the Chargers at 3:30 p.m. inside the Center for Recreation and Sports following the women's contest at 1:30 p.m.