The Men's Basketball team picked up their 17th win of the season on Monday night against Hudson Valley Community College. Jelani Moreno hit a floater with 1.4 seconds remaining to outlast the Vikings, 85-83.
Moreno sparked a 9-0 run and the Raiders led 20-14 midway through the first half. Hudson Valley answered with a run of their own and regained the lead 28-26 with six minutes left in the first. Ian Holland scored 5 straight points to close out the half and both teams were tied at 35 apiece.
In the second half, The Vikings opened with the hot hand and led 52-45. The Raiders had an answer as they sparked an 11-2 run and now led 56-54 with 13 minutes left in regulation.
Both teams traded basket for basket down the stretch. De'Vante Mateo sank two free throws with 1:30 remaining to tie the game at 83.
Moreno forced a sideline turnover with 10 seconds remaining and took matters into his own hands. With 1.4 seconds remaining, he elevated a floater over the Hudson Valley defense to secure the 85-83 win.
"That was a big win for us considering seedings and regional backets come out this week. It was a total team effort with all our guys contributing in their own way. Jelani played a very good game, we put the ball in his hands to close it out for us and he did. Momentum is huge this time of year. Now on to our regular season finale and Sophomore night on Wednesday," stated Head Coach Ej Gallup.
Moreno led with 22 points and 5 assists and shot 83% from the field. Mateo finished with 19 points and Kennyh Hardeman had 14 points and 16 rebounds. Jevonny Brown also tallied 14 points in the win. Jaisan Parker and Ian Holland contributed off the bench with 9 and 5 points.
FMCC closes out regular season play on Wednesday, February 15th at 7:00 p.m. The Raiders host Columbia-Greene Community College and will honor all sophomores.
