Box Score
BROOKVILLE, N.Y. (Jan. 23, 2010) – Led by freshman guard Jonathan Kohler's game-high 22 points, along with four other Pioneers in double figures, the C.W. Post men's basketball team came out on top in a see-saw battle with Northern Boulevard neighbor New York Institute of Technology on Saturday afternoon, defeating the Bears 88-83 in an East Coast Conference match-up. 

C.W. Post wins its tenth straight game, and improves to 13-4 overall and 9-2 in conference play. The Bears slip to 7-10 overall and 4-6 in the ECC.

The Pioneers jumped out to a quick 5-0 lead to start the game, as junior playmaker Gil Montalvo (Astoria, N.Y.) hit a pull-up jumper and sophomore guard Billy Butler (Elmont, N.Y.) nailed a three-pointer at 18:54. But NYIT went on an 11-0 run that saw them take a six point lead over C.W. Post. The Pioneers quickly answered back and pulled to within one, 11-10, on two made free throws by Nemanja Jokic (Sombor, Serbia), but the Bears again surged ahead, going on a 14-4 run that saw them take at 24-15 lead, capped by Daniel Berg's trey at 10:15.

The Pioneers quickly countered with back-to-back three-pointers by Montalvo at 9:57 at 8:52, and another three by Butler at 8:32 tied the game at 24-24. The two teams would trade baskets over the next four minutes of play, with the Bears pulling ahead only to see the Pioneers tie the game back up. NYIT took a five point lead into the halftime break, leading 41-36.

The Bears appeared to remain in command as they came out of halftime and pushed out to a seven-point lead on Russ Holloway's lay-in, and the visitors continued to keep the Pioneers at arm's length, leading by eight points, 48-40, at 16:43. But the next three minutes would belong to the home team, as the C.W. Post cagers went on a 17-0 run, with ten of those points coming from senior guard Roberto Macklin (Wappingers Falls, N.Y.) , which enabled the Pioneers to turn an 8-point deficit into a nine-point lead.

NYIT's Kayvon Roberts swished a three at 13:24 to break the scoring drought for the Bears, but the damage was done, and over the next ten minutes, the Pioneer lead fluctuated between 6 to 11 points. NYIT made things interesting as they mounted a late 7-0 run, capped by Berg's three at 2:37 that cut the home advantage to just three points, 79-76. 

But Kohler's floater at 2:13 and Hall's layup at 1:54 pushed the hosts back to a 7-point lead, 83-76, and Butler knocked down two free throws to keep the Pioneers at a comfortable margin, 85-78. After a missed three on the NYIT end, Jokic swished two more free throws to increase the Pioneer lead to nine, 87-78. A jumper by Anthony Clarke was offset by a free throw from Macklin, and although Clarke banked a three-pointer at the buzzer, the Pioneers hung on to the 88-83 victory. 

Kohler's 22-point effort led both teams, as the freshman also contributed five helpers, and Butler was right behind him with 21 points and six assists. Macklin scored 13 points off the bench, Hall notched 12 points, and Montalvo filled out the stat sheet with 11 points and a game-high seven assists and three steals. 

Clarke led NYIT with 19 points. Dominic Scurry chipped in with 14 points, and Berg and Roberts each added 11 apiece for the Bears.

NYIT shot 51% from the floor (30-58) and 33% from three-point range (8-24), making 15-of-24 from the charity stripe. C.W. Post also shot well from the floor (54%, 34-63) and from three (42%, 9-21), and held a 36-29 edge on the glass. The assist/turnover ratio for C.W. Post (24/17) was also higher then NYIT's 11/19 showing. 

C.W. Post will look to continue its winning streak as the Pioneers travel to Molloy College on Wednesday, January 27, in an 8 p.m. tilt.