SYRACUSE, N.Y. – The University of New Haven men's basketball team dropped a 68-64 decision to the Le Moyne Dolphins in its season and Northeast-10 Conference opener on Tuesday at Ted Grant Court. Junior Jemal Mosley (Spring Valley, N.Y./Don Bosco Prep / Putnam Science Academy) led all scorers in the game with 27 points, one shy of his career high.

Mosley's 27 points came on 10-of-15 shooting, including 5-of-8 from beyond the three point arc. The 10 field goals made by the junior guard is a new career-best, while his 27 points falls one shy of his all-time best of 28 set last season against Post.

Two additional Chargers joined Mosely in double figures with senior Samir McDaniels (Roxbury, Mass./New Mission) chipping in 13 and Levy Gillespie (Meriden, Conn./Capital Preparatory Magnet) adding 10. McDaniels joined in the shooting success as he missed just three of his nine attempts, while Gillespie's shooting prowess came at the free throw line where he was a perfect 4-of-4.  

As a team, New Haven finished the game shooting 40.4 percent on 21-of-52 with nine of those field goals coming from outside the three point arc. The nine long range baskets came on 24 attempts for an average of 37.5 percent.

The Chargers also trailed in the battle of the boards with a 36-31 margin between the two squads. Leading the Blue and Gold in the rebounding battle was McDaniels and sophomore Tommy Hunt (Smithfield, R.I./St. Andrew's) who each finished with seven total boards. The seven rebounds for Hunt sets a new career-high. In addition to leading the Chargers in scoring, Mosley also dished out five assists and picked off four steals, both of which led the team.

FIRST HALF NOTES

·           The Chargers saw their first lead of the game come within the first three minutes when junior sharpshooter Jemal Mosley (Spring Valley, N.Y./Don Bosco Prep / Putnam Science Academy) sank his first three pointer of the game thanks to an assist from Joshua Guddemi (Nottingham, England/Derby). Mosley's bucket came as a back-to-back basket for the Chargers joining senior Samir McDaniels (Roxbury, Mass./New Mission) who opened New Haven's scoring with a layup just under two minutes into the action.

·           Just over two minutes later, sophomore Levy Gillespie (Meriden, Conn./Capital Preparatory Magnet) would go back-to-back from beyond the arc to give the Chargers an 11-7 lead with 14:41 remaining. Both of the hoops came courtesy of Mosley assists.

·           New Haven would hold the Dolphins without a basket over a four-plus minute stretch that allowed the Chargers to take their largest lead of the game at 18-10 with exactly 11 minutes remaining before the break. The final two points of that rally came at the free throw line as Gillespie would sink both of his attempts.

·           Facing its largest deficit of the first half, 11 points, Mosley would fire at the buzzer and sink his third three pointer of the half, pulling New Haven to a 37-29 shortage heading into the locker room.

·           Mosley led the Chargers at the break with 15 points on 5-of-7 overall and 3-of-5 from beyond the arc. His 15 points represented the only Charger in double figures, while as a team, New Haven shot 37 percent in the opening half on 10-of-27.

SECOND HALF NOTES

·           Just over four minutes into the second frame, Jemal Mosley (Spring Valley, N.Y./Don Bosco Prep / Putnam Science Academy) cut the Chargers deficit nearly in half when he drilled back-to-back jumpers, putting the score at 43-37 with 15:44 remaining.  

·           The Chargers began to chip away at their deficit when they matched a Dolphins three pointer with three long range baskets of their own, one each from Tommy Hunt (Smithfield, R.I./St. Andrew's), Michael Bourke (South Orange, N.J./The Hun School of Princeton) and Mosley. The final from Mosely cut the Le Moyne lead to 54-50 and came courtesy of a feed from Joshua Guddemi (Nottingham, England/Derby).

·           Facing a six point deficit late in the half, New Haven pulled within a single basket when Mosely drained his fifth, and final, three pointer that pulled New Haven within 61-58 with 71 seconds remaining.

·           A Samir McDaniels (Roxbury, Mass./New Mission) layup with six seconds remaining gave the Chargers life and just a two point deficit, but Le Moyne secured the victory with a pair of free throws.

·           Mosley again finished as the only New Haven player in double figures in the second half as he contributed 12 points, while McDaniels finished just behind him with nine. Of the pair, McDaniels had the hot hand as he finished 4-of-5 from the field, while also pulling down six boards.

INSIDE THE NUMBERS

·           The 27 points for junior Jemal Mosley (Spring Valley, N.Y./Don Bosco Prep / Putnam Science Academy) was one shy of his career-high set last season against Post, while his 10 made field goals set a new career-best. It is also the fifth time that Mosley has finished with 20 or more points and the eighth time in his career he has led the team in scoring.

·           Senior Samir McDaniels (Roxbury, Mass./New Mission) scored in double figures for the seventh time in his career, while he led the team in rebounding for the fourth time since putting on a Charger uniform.

·           Two of the three freshman who saw their first action in a Blue and Gold uniform finished with at least one basket; Michael Bourke (South Orange, N.J./The Hun School of Princeton) added five points and Jacob Pupavac (Geelong, Australia/Belmont) finished with two points.

TWEETABLES (140 characters or less)

·           Junior guard Jemal Mosley (Spring Valley, N.Y./Don Bosco Prep / Putnam Science Academy) led New Haven in scoring (27 points), assists (5) and steals (4) in his 58th career game.

·           Of Jemal Mosley (Spring Valley, N.Y./Don Bosco Prep / Putnam Science Academy)'s career-high 10 made field goals, five came from beyond the three point arc.

·           New Haven's best shooting of the night came in the second half when they finished 11-of-25 for 44 percent.  

·           Sophomore Levy Gillespie (Meriden, Conn./Capital Preparatory Magnet) finished a perfect 4-of-4 at the free throw line with the four made baskets setting a career-high.

UP NEXT
New Haven will make its debut at Charger Gymnasium on Saturday when they join the women's basketball team for a Northeast-10 Conferen`ce doubleheader against Saint Rose. Tip off in the men's game is scheduled for 3:30 p.m. Complete coverage of Charger men's basketball can be found at www.NewHavenChargers.com.