BOX SCORE

Old Westbury, NY - The Baruch College Bearcats defeated York College, 93-70, to win the ECAC Metro Championship on Sunday at the neutral site location of SUNY-Old Westbury.

The Bearcats used strong defense in the first half to score 21 points off 13 turnovers by the Cardinals of York College. They also connected on 5-of-13 three-point attempts to cruise to a 41-31 halftime advantage.

During the second half, they continued to build off their momentum and started the second half with an 18-8 run to lead York by the score of 59-39 with 14:33 left.

York would later make a run to get as close as 81-65 with 5:12 left, but the Bearcats connected on seven of their last nine field goals attempts to complete the 93-70 rout in an ECAC Metro Final featuring two CUNYAC schools.

Overall, Baruch shot 51 percent (35-69), committed only seven turnovers, and out-rebounded York by a 36-32 margin to capture their second-ever ECAC Metro trophy (previous was in 2003).

York shot 44 percent (24-55) from the field, but committed 17 turnovers that in the end led to 25 total points for Baruch.

Junior point guard Lionel Hilaire (Far Rockaway, NY/Archbishop Molloy) was named the Tournament MVP. He led the Bearcats this afternoon with 21 points, which included shooting 4-of-6 from three-point range.

Chris Beauchamp (Queens, NY/Xavier) and George Kunkel (Glendale, NY/Archbishop Molloy) finished with 18 points each. Kunkel also ended his very successful career in a Baruch uniform with six rebounds, four assists and two steals. Sean Loftus (Queens, NY/Archbishop Molloy) recorded a double-double with 16 points and 12 rebounds.

Marcel Esonwune (Lagos, Nigeria/Marist Brothers) led York with another double-double of 21 points, 13 rebounds and two blocked shots in 39 minutes of action. Elijah Evelyn (St. Albans, NY/WM Dickinson) scored 19 points and grabbed six rebounds.

Nick Hamilton Lopez (Woodside, NY/Pfieffer), who scored 30 points in a York win over Baruch on January 6, was limited to nine total points, including only two in the first half.

York finishes their season with a record of 23-8. Baruch wins eight of their last nine games to end the season with a 23-7 record.

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