PATCHOGUE, N.Y. (Dec. 13, 2025) - The U.S. Merchant Marine Academy men's basketball team fell to St. Joseph's (L.I.), 81–55, on Saturday afternoon in their Skyline Conference opener at Danzi Athletic Center. The Mariners drop to 3–5 (0–1 Skyline) while the Golden Eagles improve to 3–5 (1–0 Skyline).
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USMMA had three players score in double figures on the afternoon. Freshman Richard Sykes Jr. (Tampa, Fla.) and freshman Jack Flannery (McKinney, Texas) led the Mariners with a team-high 12 points each, while sophomore Tim Barton (Waldorf, Md.) added 11 points. Sykes registered a game-high four steals and equaled a team-best with Barton with three assists.
Merchant Marine finished the afternoon shooting 34.6% from the floor and 17.2% from three (5-of-29), while converting 60.9% at the line, while St. Joseph's countered with 46.9% shooting overall and 43.3% from long range. The Golden Eagles outrebounded the Mariners 59–20. Both teams scored 14 points off turnovers, and the Golden Eagles posted a 22–5 edge in second-chance points.
Merchant Marine opened the afternoon with early movement from the perimeter as Flannery buried a three on the game's first possession to give the Mariners a 3-0 lead. St. Joseph's responded with a 14-0 run to move ahead 14-3 before Sykes stopped the stretch with a driving layup to make it 14-5. Flannery added a free throw and another three to bring the score to 16-9, and sophomore Mason Lavergne (Baton Rouge, La.) followed with a finish inside to trim the margin to 16-11. After St. Joseph's extended the lead to 26-11, freshman Noah Brown (Hedgesville, W.Va.) answered with a three to cut it to 26-14.
Midway through the half, USMMA pieced together a strong push sparked by interior attacks. Lavergne scored to make it 26-16, and Brown buried his second three-pointer of the period to bring the score to 28-19. After St. Joseph's made it 31-21, Sykes converted at the line to cut it to 31-23, and Lavergne struck again inside to make it 33-25. In the closing minutes of the half, Barton powered in back-to-back layups, and sophomore Aaron Zalescik (Lambertville, N.J.) added another finish in the paint to pull USMMA within 35-32. A late St. Joseph's push sent the Mariners into halftime trailing 39-32.
In the second half, St. Joseph's used another extended run to create separation. After a quick basket to make it 41–32, the Mariners responded with free throws from Flannery and Sykes to close to 41–34, but the hosts answered with a series of layups and threes to stretch the advantage to 55–37 and later 62–43. Brown's three at 8:48 brought the score to 62–46, and Barton and Sykes added late points as Merchant Marine continued to battle, but St. Joseph's pushed the lead as high as 79–49 and would cruise the rest of the way to an 81-55 victory.
St. Joseph's was led by Jaiden Gaston, who scored a game-high 19 points while adding five assists and four rebounds. Josh Hayes finished with 15 points, knocked down three three-pointers, and collected five boards. Georgia Pauli scored nine points and hauled down seven rebounds.
Merchant Marine returns to action on Tuesday, Dec. 16, when the Mariners host Drew University in a non-conference matchup at 7 p.m.
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