BRONX, N.Y. (Feb. 14, 2026) - The U.S. Merchant Marine Academy men's basketball team fell, 85-70, to rival SUNY Maritime on Saturday afternoon in Skyline Conference action. The Privateers improved to 12-11 overall (8-6 Skyline), while the Mariners dropped to 7-16 overall (4-10 Skyline).
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The Blue and Gray had three players score in double figures on the afternoon. Freshman Jack Flannery (McKinney, Texas) led the way with a game-high 27 points and was a perfect 10-for-10 at the free-throw line. Sophomores Aaron Zalescik (Lambertville, N.J.) and Mason Lavergne (Baton Rouge, La.) chipped in with 15 and 11 points, respectively. Zalescik also hauled down a team-high nine rebounds, while classmate Tim Barton (Waldorf, Md.) dished out a career-high eight assists.
Merchant Marine shot 23-of-63 (36.5%) from the field, including 7-of-21 (33.3%) from three-point range. SUNY Maritime finished 29-of-58 (50.0%) overall and 11-of-22 (50.0%) from beyond the arc, while holding a 42-36 edge on the glass.
SUNY Maritime opened the scoring from deep, but the Mariners struck first on sophomore Colin Hart's (Santa Rosa Beach, Fla.) tip-in at 18:11 for a 2-0 lead. After the Privateers answered with a three at 17:39, Lavergne split a pair at 17:33 to tie it, 3-3. SUNY Maritime then used a quick burst to create separation, stretching the margin to 9-3 at 16:18 before Barton finished inside at 15:59 to pull the visitors within four, 9-5. The Privateers kept the pressure on, building the advantage to double figures, 22-10 at the 10:17 mark before Flannery hit a pair of threes at 8:38 and 7:47 to trim the deficit to 28-16. Lavergne's layup at 6:33 made it 28-18, but SUNY Maritime responded with timely three pointers and free throws down the stretch, carrying a 44-27 lead into the break.
USMMA opened the second half with a Zalescik layup at 19:51 to cut it to 44-29, and the Mariners continued to chip away as Flannery scored in the paint at 16:37 and Lavergne drilled a three at 16:10 to make it 47-34. After a fastbreak layup by freshman Noah Brown (Hedgesville, W.Va.) at 15:04, Zalescik went to the line at 13:57, and a finish in the paint at 13:04 helped the Mariners close within 10, 51-41. SUNY Maritime answered again from deep, pushing the lead back to 61-41 at 11:20, though USMMA countered with threes from freshman Talan Dawkins (South Riding, Va.) at 10:05 and Lavergne at 9:25 to make it 63-49. The Mariners kept fighting with a three from Zalescik at 4:04 to make it 73-61, but SUNY Maritime was able to close it out, winning 85-70.
Zion Williams and Jake Devaney paced SUNY Maritime with 22 points apiece, while Tyler Anderson added 14.
Merchant Marine returns to action next Wednesday, Feb. 18, on the road at Farmingdale State in Skyline Conference action beginning at 7 p.m.
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