KINGS POINT, N.Y (Dec. 2, 2023) – The U.S. Merchant Marine Academy Mariners men's basketball team dropped its annual 142 Game to the rival U.S. Coast Guard Academy Bears by a score of 78-64. The Bears came into the Liebertz Gymnasium to earn their sixth-straight win over the Mariners and moved to 5-2 overall on the season. With this afternoon's loss, USMMA fell to 3-4.
 
Game Link

• Box Score

With a raucous crowd on hand, the Mariners came out with energy and speed on both ends of the floor in the opening 20 minutes. Led by a combined 22 points from junior Drew Zalescik (Lambertville, N.J.) and senior DeMarcus Spivey (Ashburn, Va.), USMMA played a fast-paced style of offense. Several Mariners possessions in the first half resulted in run-and-gun layups and a confused Coast Guard defense. Merchant Marine as a team went 16-for-29 (55.2%) from the field in the first half.
 
While the Bears were searching for answers on defense, the kept themselves in the game with their three-point prowess. Coast Guard catapulted 16 three-point attempts in the first half, converting seven of them. Declan Rooney and Mitch Shettles led the way making two triples each for the Bears.
 
Coast Guard's three-point shooting slowed the Mariners offense and the pace down. With momentum leaning towards the Bears, the Mariners needed a jolt. Kings Point got it thanks to a two-handed dunk by senior Jake Hatch (Austin, Texas) in the final seconds of the first half that brought the crowd of 325 to their feet.
 
Leading 39-36 with 20 minutes to play, the Mariners were looking to reestablish a fast-paced game. On the other side of the coin, Coast Guard was looking to slow down Zalescik, whose 12 points led all scorers at the intermission.
 
The Bears took the court in half number two and picked up where they left off from beyond the arc. Coast Guard went 6-for-12 from downtown in the second half led by Shettles, who shuttled in three of his six attempts from long range. As a team, the Bears knocked down 13 threes on 28 attempts. Shettles finished with a game-high 21 points while Rooney chipped in 14 points off the bench in the Bears' 14-point victory.   
 
Offensively, the Mariners could not find an open Zalescik as much as they did in the first half. On every trip down the floor, Coast Guard inserted three sometimes four defenders in the paint. This defensive adjustment by the Bears stifled the Mariners' offense and kept them to the outside.
 
 USMMA was held to 25 points in the final 20 minutes as a result. Spivey finished as the team leader with 18 points while Zalescik closed his day with 16. Both Spivey and Zalescik shot an adequate 7-of-15 from the field.
 
Merchant Marine will look to get back to .500 this coming Wednesday night, Dec. 6, when the Mariners welcome in Sarah Lawrence for the Toys for Tots Game. Tipoff time is schedule for 7 p.m. at Liebertz Gymnasium in what will be the Mariners' first Skyline Conference home game of the season. Live stats and a live video steam of the game will be available with links on the USMMA Men's Basketball Schedule Page.
 
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