Purchase, NY (Jan. 10, 2019) – Facing Farmingdale State for the second time this season, the Purchase College men's basketball team used a second half offensive surge to fuel a 96-86 Skyline Conference victory Thursday night.

A back-and-forth opening half saw Purchase (7-6, 5-4 Skyline) use a 6-0 run to gain a 12-point lead (31-19) over the visiting Rams (9-6, 7-3 Skyline). Farmingdale's Troy Feeney connected on four free throws to narrow the PC lead to 31-25. The Rams netted another six unanswered points in the final two minutes of the half to come within one point of tying the game.

At the break, Purchase led 41-40.

In the second half, Matthew Graham hit two free throws and a three-pointer in the opening minute to give Farmingdale a 44-41 lead over the Panthers. FSC stretched its lead to 10 (72-62) on an Ali Mableton layup at 8:07.

Senior captain Michael Soffer (Agoura Hills, CA) netted back-to-back 3-pointers on Purchase's next two possessions. Sophomore guard Jorge Perdomo (Bronx, NY) and senior guard Willie Britton (Queens, NY) combined for another four points from the charity stripe, to bring Purchase within one basket of taking the lead.

Junior guard Maxx Miller (White Plains, NY) gave PC its first advantage of the half with a layup at 5:17, but Farmingdale answered back on the next play with a George Riefenstahl and-one layup to take back the lead, 76-74.

Less than a minute later, Britton and senior guard Elijah Lott (East Greenbush, NY) put up six unanswered points for Purchase to give the Panthers an 80-76 advantage. Purchase outshot the Rams 16-10 in the final minutes of action to secure the 96-86 Skyline victory.

Britton led the charge with 26 total points, seven rebounds and five assists. Soffer and Perdomo finished with 16 points apiece and combined for another 12 boards. Lott and Miller chipped in with 15 and 10 points, respectively.

The Panthers shot 43.3 percent (26-60), including 40 points in the paint and 17 off fast breaks.

For Farmingdale, Graham led all scorers with 32 points, including a perfect 10-for-10 from the free throw line. Riefenstahl finished with 17 points and two blocks, while Mableton contributed another 13 points in the loss.

Purchase is back in action this Saturday at the College of Mount Saint Vincent. The Dolphins will host the Panthers in a Skyline tip-off starting at 3 p.m.