Men's Basketball

Rams Win Second Skyline Championship in Three Years; Robinson Named MVP

Farmingdale State - 91, St. Joseph's - 71

Farmingdale, N.Y. - The Farmingdale State men's basketball team (22-5) won their second Skyline Conference Championship in three years tonight with a 91-71 victory over St. Joseph's College (21-6). Rams senior forward Brian Robinson (White Plains, N.Y./White Plains) was named the Tournament MVP after posting 18 points and six rebounds on 9-of-10 shooting.

Farmingdale opened up a 17-6 lead just five minutes into the game before St. Joe's used an eight point run to cut the deficit to three, 17-14, with 12:26 left in the half. The Rams held the lead for the rest of the first and went into the locker room holding a 43-32 edge.

In the second half, Farmingdale could not be stopped as they shot 60-percent from the field (15-for-25) to build up the lead to as much as 23 points and take the final 91-71 win. Junior guard Damien Santana (Brooklyn, N.Y./Grady) poured in 18 points in the half, ending with a final of 26 points and seven rebounds.

Senior guard Peter Lipka (Shelton, Conn./Shelton) finished the night with 19 points, hitting 5-of-9 from long range. Sophomore guard Merlin Bass (Queens, N.Y./Holy Cross) had nine points, eight assists, seven rebounds and six steals for the night.

St. Joe's was led by senior guard Phil Lipari (Massapequa, N.Y./Massapequa) with 23 points. Senior forward Brandon Freeman (Freeport, N.Y./Freeport) registered the games only double-double of 13 points and 14 rebounds.

Farmingdale State receives the automatic qualifier with the win and now makes the trip to the NCAA Division III Championship Tournament, a field of 59 teams from across the country. The bracket for the tournament will be announced by the NCAA (ncaasports.com) on Monday, March 3rd at Noon.

Stay tuned to www.farmingdalesports.com for more info!

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