By Sean Markisic
On Saturday, Feb. 17, the Bulldogs played at Hunter College in the first round of the CUNY Athletic Conference (CUNYAC) Championship. In the first half, Hunter was able to control the game on both ends of the floor and hold a commanding lead most of the way. For the Bulldogs, Dale was struggling to score at the elite level that we have become accustomed to seeing from him, which put a limit on the amount of impact he was able to have in this game. Hunter started the game on a 9-2 run and even went on to lead 33-14 with just under four minutes left in the first half.
The Bulldogs were able to go on a 9-0 to cut the lead to just ten points, giving them the momentum they needed going into the second half. The second half started with a basket from Hunter immediately followed by a 10-0 Bulldogs run to give them a 36-35 lead. From there, it felt like a back-and-forth battle. Both teams were trading leads at all times, and neither team was able to gain any true ground on the other.
As the leads kept going back and forth, both teams were exhausted but neither was able to pull away with a lead to help them put the game away. Hunter point guard Karrem McDonald was able to keep his team afloat with his constant ability to move the ball, and in the process, set his teammates up nicely to score. Hunter was again able to pull away with a 58-50 lead with 3:15 remaining in the game, but the Bulldogs wouldn’t stop without a fight.
They cut the lead to three with 24 seconds remaining in the game. The Bulldogs were able to get a stop a few times but were never able to score when they needed to most. With yet another defensive stop, the Bulldogs had one final shot at tying the game and sending it to overtime. Dale caught the ball with a clear look at the basket but was immediately double-teamed and the potential game-tying shot came up short.
This loss marks an end to their season, following a season full of wins. The coaching staff have lots of lessons that they can take away from this season to build up their experience for next year. Several players will be going into their senior year next season, with a chance to play a high-level season and make their way to the next CUNYAC championship.