Firebirds Comeback Bid Cut Short 65-63 By Buzzer Beater

WASHINGTON, DC – The University of the District of Columbia men's basketball team fought back, but Molloy College, prevails 65-63 in ECC conference play Wednesday night at UDC Gym.

The Firebirds (9-7) at one point were down by 20 points, but they never gave up and fought back to tie the game with seconds left. The Lions 1st in the ECC, struggled offensively shooting 33 percent from the field and 25 percent from the three point line.

The Lions were the better team in the first half shooting 37 percent from the field, 41 percent from the three point line, and 77 percent from the free throw line. They were led by Curtis Jenkins and Nick Corbett who scored 40 points combined.

The Firebirds were lead by freshman guard Juanye Colon who finished the game with 14 points and a season-high three steals off the bench. Junior guard Kerry Kirkwood led all Firebird starters with nine points, seven rebounds and a season-high two blocks.

The Firebirds went in to the half down 43-31. They went on to hold the Lions to just 22 second half points on 29 percent shooting (9-of-31) from the field. The two teams started the half trading baskets and working hard on defense. With 6 minutes left on the clock the Firebirds went on a 17-2 run to tie the game at 63 with eight seconds left on the clock after a contest layup by senior guard Danny Shand. The Lions gave the ball to Nick Corbett who ran the full court and made a contested layup with the time expiring to give the Lions the win. Danny Shand was great off the bench scoring 13 points and four rebounds. The Firebirds led in points off turnover (18-14),second chance points (11-10), and bench points (29-7).

The Firebirds will look to get a win on the road in Flushing, NY vs Queens College on Saturday, January 19th. Tip-off is at 3:30 p.m.