UDC Men's Basketball Defeats Mercy to Clinch the No. 6 Spot in the ECC Championship Playoffs

WASHINGTON, DC- The University of the District of Columbia's men's basketball team ended the regular season pulling through with an 80-71 victory over Mercy College, to secure the No.6 spot in the ECC Championship basketball tournament. The Firebirds ended wrapped up the regular season with a 9-19, 8-10 ECC record while the Mavericks fell to 6-19, 6-12 in conference play.

Phillip Brown Jr led the Firebird defense posting a double-double on 13 points and a team-high 14 rebounds while making three blocks and grabbing one steal. Jahmir Marable-Williams also had a double-double with 14 points and a game-high 15 assists. Kenyon Stone led all scorers with 23 points going 7-12 from the field and a perfect 7-7 from the foul line while grabbing nine boards. Hartnel Haye rounded out double-figure scoring for the Firebirds contributing 16 points. 

In a highly contested game and the final spot in the playoffs up for grabs, both teams were fighting for the win. The visiting Mavericks and the Firebirds went head to head in the first half going back and forth with the lead, and multiple ties. A 3-point jumper from Curtis would give UDC a three-point lead over Mercy going into halftime.

The second half saw another series of multiple lead changes and ties but the Home team would pull away in the final minutes to secure their victory and the No. 6 spot in the ECC Championship Playoffs. 

UDC (9-19, 8-10 ECC) will head to N.Y. on Wednesday, March 2nd to face off against the No.3 seed Molloy College in the quarterfinals. The tip-off is set for 7:00 pm and will be live-streamed on the ECC Network.