BROOKLYN, N.Y. – The LIU men's basketball team held off a late push by St. Francis Brooklyn in the Steinberg Wellness Center to capture the 47th Annual Battle of Brooklyn title, as the Sharks beat the Terriers, 74-69. Ty Flowers and Eral Penn were named Co-Battle of Brooklyn MVPs for the second-straight year.
 
SHARK BITES

• The game was close throughout, with nine lead changes and six tied scores.
• The widest gap of the game was early in the first half, when the the Terriers went up 13-4. Though LIU would battle back, SFBK held a 21-15 lead at the under 12 media timeout.
• Over the next three minutes though, the Sharks went on an 8-2 run, sparked by a driving layup from Alex Rivera, and led by a three-point push from freshman Quion Burns. A three pointer from Flowers at 6:47 put LIU on top, 26-23.
• The Sharks held on to that lead for the rest of the half, and had a 35-33 advantage at the break.
• The start of the second period saw SFBK tie it up, and the two teams would trade the lead back and forth from there.
• LIU managed to build up a seven-point lead, 59-52 with 7:40 to play, but the Terriers would close it to two points with 4:24 to play, and continued to threaten.
• A jumper with 44 seconds left put the score at 72-69, and the Terriers called a time out. But on the next play, the Sharks broke the press successfully, and converted a big Eral Penn dunk, deflating the visitors. SFBK's last three late shots wouldn't fall, sealing the win for the Sharks, 74-69.
• Flowers finished the game with 32 points to lead the Sharks, along with 12 rebounds. The grad student went 6-for-12 from three-point range, and 8-for-9 from the free throw line in 40 minutes of action.
• Penn scored 24 points in the win, along with six rebounds.
• Sophomore Kyndall Davis had eight points, while Tre Wood led the team with six assists.
• With the win, LIU now leads the all-time Battle of Brooklyn series 27-20, having won the last two straight.
• Up next, the Sharks host Bryant, Saturday, February 12 at 2 p.m.