Jamaica, NY - Fifth-seeded New York City College of Technology (16-10) upset No. 1 Staten Island (18-8), 84-75, to advance to the finals of the 2004 CUNYAC / Con Edison Men's Basketball Championships. City Tech head coach Ray Amalbert will make his seventh appearance in the tournament final, following five wins in six season at the helm of Hunter College in the early 1990's.

Junior center Shacun Malave (Clinton/Bronx, NY), the CUNYAC Player of the Year, dominated on the interior, recording 20 points, 15 rebounds, and seven blocks to send the Yellow Jackets into the finals. Leading 45-34 at the break the Yellow Jackets stretched their lead to 56-38 with 15:40 remaining. But Staten Island went on a 12-0 run over the next 2:50 to close to within 56-50 with 12:50 to play. City Tech answered with six straight points to push the lead back to 12 points, 62-50 with 11:04 remaining as senior forward Roger Redhead (South Shore/Brooklyn, NY) hit a three-point goal and freshman guard Otis Saylee (Seward Park/New York, NY) converted a three-point play. The Dolphins made a final push to cut the deficit to eight points, 70-62, with 4:37 remaining, but that was as close as they would get until the final seconds of the contest.

After a tight first ten minutes of the game, City Tech was able to establish a 30-22 lead with 7:46 remaining in the opening half. Freshman guard Kareem Hanley (Canarsie/Brooklyn, NY) hit a three-point goal and junior forward Jason Senior (Boys & Girls/Brooklyn, NY) capped a 7-0 run with a dunk. Staten Island cut the lead to 30-27 with 5:47 remaining after junior center Michael Nebavlakis (Roosevelt/Brooklyn, NY) hit a pair of free throws, but the Yellow Jackets went on a 12-2 run to extend their lead to 42-29 with 2:15 left. Junior guard Carlito Ulett (Midwood/Brooklyn, NY) banked in a halfcourt shot at the buzzer to bring the Dolphins within 11 points at the break.

Malave, who did most of his damage in the first half with 15 points and 10 rebounds, was aided by the efforts of three other Yellow Jackets who scored in double-figures. Senior scored 20 points (8-for-14 field goals) and sophomore guard Clyde Forteau (St. Raymond's/Bronx, NY) added 17 points and 14 rebounds, while Redhead added 12.

"I knew that if we got past the first game,” said Amalbert. "A second win would speak volumes about our program and be like gravy spilling off of the plate. I knew that if we could get through the provisional NCAA process, we could advance in the playoffs this season, which is our first we are eligible for the NCAA Tournament.”

Nebavlakis recorded a double-double of 21 points and 10 rebounds for Staten Island, while Ulett added 18 points and 8 rebounds. Junior guard Michael Stewart (Westinghouse/Brooklyn, NY) also chipped in with 19 points.

#3 LEHMAN 81, #2 JOHN JAY 73      BOX SCORE
Jamaica, NY - Third-seeded Lehman upset No. 2 John Jay, 81-73, to advance to the finals of the 2004 CUNYAC/ Con Edison Men's Basketball Championships. The Lightning will face No. 5 City Tech, who defeated No. 1 Staten Island in the opening game.

Lehman (21-6) stretched their 40-36 halftime edge to eight points, 44-36, with 19:25 remaining as junior forward Miguel Jorge (Bronx, NY) and senior guard Jonathan Rojas (Walton, Bronx, NY) scored early buckets for the Lightning. John Jay (21-6) responded with an 8-2 run to close within 46-44 on a three-point goal by junior guard Jonathan Polanco (Gompers/Bronx, NY) with 15:45 left, but Lehman scored seven straight points to go back out on top 51-44. The Lightning extended their advantage to 65-51 with 9:20 left as Rojas converted on a putback. The Bloodhounds closed to within seven points, 69-62, on a three-point goal by junior guard Tim White (Molloy/Queens, NY) with 7:13 remaining. They cut the lead even further, as senior guard Pablo Palma (Norman Thomas/New York, NY) hit a pair of three-point goals to cut the lead to just 72-70 with 3:05 left. After a pair of free throws by Lehman sophomore forward Kyle Lockett (Hamilton/White Plains, NY), John Jay forward Mark Sanders (Transit Tech/New York, NY) missed a key one and one opportunity and Lockett put the game away with a three-point goal from the right corner with twenty-four seconds left to make the score 77-70.

John Jay started the game out fast as they grabbed a 13-7 advantage with 14:25 left, but Lockett and junior guard Andre Bagot (Sullivan CC/Bronx, NY) hit back-to-back three-point goals to even the score at the 13:57 mark. Lehman fell behind again and trailed 30- 20 with 6:45 remaining, however, the Lightning went on a huge, 20-6 run to overtake the Bloodhounds and led 40-36 at halftime. Jorge scored nine points and Bagot added six points during the spurt. Palma scored 12 points for John Jay in the stanza, and Jorge and Bagot each had nine points for Lehman.

"I knew after we beat CCNY at home (Dec.1) that this team had great chemistry and is a special team,” said Lehman head coach Steve Schulman, whose team tied the school record for wins with 21 tonight. "We're playing focused. I wrote it on the board today that John Jay won the battle (by winning both contests this season), but we're going to win the war.”

Lockett led Lehman with 25 points and Rojas added 21 points and added a team-high nine rebounds. Bagot added 14 points, 10 assists and three steals as the Lightning return to the finals for the first time since 1997.

Palma scored a game-high 28 points (5-for-11 three-point field goals) for John Jay and White added 14.