BROOKLYN, N.Y. – The LIU men's basketball team completed the sweep of Central Connecticut State Sunday afternoon in the Steinberg Wellness Center, beating the Blue Devils, 81-79. CCSU battled until the final moments, but LIU took the win to improve to 9-7 in Northeast Conference play.
 
SHARK BITES

• LIU was led by 26 points from senior Ty Flowers, who flirted with a triple double for the second-straight game. Flowers had 26 points, 11 rebounds and six assists, along with four steals and two blocks. The only other player to match that stat line in the past ten years, according to the NEC's Ron Ratner, is LSU's Ben Simmons.
• Junior Jermaine Jackson Jr. was also a top scorer, with 24 points, including five threes.
• Junior Jack Ballantyne led the squad with 12 rebounds, tying his career high.
• The game was a battle throughout, as CCSU never let LIU build a lead of more than seven points. The Blue Devils had four players in double digit scoring, and matched LIU in nearly every statistical category.
• LIU's advantage came from long distance, where the Sharks made 11 threes to CCSU's six.
• CCSU had a 14-6 lead early in the game, and would lead for approximately 36 percent of the contest. The Blue Devils were led by 20 points from Zach Newkirk.
• The Sharks also had strong rebounding performances from Eral Penn (nine rebounds) and Virshon Cotton (seven rebounds, four assists).
• Up next, LIU heads north to take on one of the top teams in the league, Bryant. The Bulldogs are 8-4 in the NEC, and currently slated as the No. 2 team heading into the playoff picture as the season winds down. LIU will take on Bryant Thursday, February 25 and Friday, Februar