BROOKLYN, N.Y. – The LIU men's basketball team took back the Battle of Brooklyn trophy Saturday afternoon for the first time since 2018, beating the St. Francis Brooklyn Terriers, 102-88. The Sharks scored 100+ points against a Division I opponent for the first time since 2012. Senior Ty Flowers and junior Eral Penn were named Co-Battle of Brooklyn MVPs. The duo had a combined 45 pts and 21 rebounds. They are the first duo ever to earn Co-MVP honors in the series' history.
 
SHARK BITES

• The win was a total team effort, as five different players scored in double digits, including three with 20+ point performances. The Sharks shot 52.2 percent from the field in the win, and move to 6-3 in the Northeast conference.
• St. Francis Brooklyn started the game on a strong note, going up 15-9 on the Sharks at 16:02.
• Over the next four and a half minutes, however, the Sharks would go on a 22-4 run. LIU didn't miss much, going 8-for-11 in that span, including nine points from Alex Rivera. The run gave the Sharks a 31-19 lead at the 10-minute mark in the first half. They would not trail again.
• Even though LIU's shooting percentage cooled slightly over the last 10 minutes of the period, the scoring didn't stop. LIU would put up 30 more points, taking a 61-40 lead at the halftime break.
• LIU shot 52.4 percent from the field in the first half, including 11 threes. The Sharks also forced 9 steals for the Terriers in that period.
• At the start of the second half, the Sharks continued the run, outscoring the Terriers 18-6 over a four-minute span that gave them their widest lead of the day, 81-51 with 14:12 to play.
• St. Francis Brooklyn would find some energy in the second period and started to close the gap, but never came close enough to threaten. LIU would take the win in the end, 102-88.
• Co-MVP senior Ty Flowers led the team with 23 points, going 9-for-12 from the field. He also had eight rebounds, a block, an assist and a steal.
• Co-MVP junior Eral Penn had 22 points, including four three pointers. He finished with a game-high 13 rebounds, four assists and three steals.
• Junior Jermaine Jackson Jr. had 21 points, and a team-high eight assists, as well as five steals and five rebounds.
• Sophomore Alex Rivera had 14 points, shooting 4-for-7 from three-point range. And junior Virshon Cotton added 12 points, along with five assists, four rebounds and two steals.
• Up next, the Sharks have a brief break, before they turnaround and play St. Francis Brooklyn again at home, Monday, February 1 at 5 p.m.