PATCHOGUE, NY - The Purchase College men's basketball team held off a late charge by St. Joseph's College-Long Island Wednesday, as the Panthers topped the Golden Eagles, 84-79, in a Skyline Conference battle.

Purchase looked well on its way to a victory late in the contest, as the team lead by 14 points with just 2:45 remaining. However, the Golden Eagles, who were a thorn in the Panthers' side all game long, managed to cut the deficit to just two points with 20 seconds to play.

Fortunately, the Panthers nailed some clutch free throws down the stretch to hold on for the crucial Skyline Conference road win.

With the result, Purchase is now 14-6 overall, 9-2 in the Skyline and two games ahead of Manhattanville College in the North Division. As for St. Joseph's-Long Island, the Golden Eagles fell to 5-14 overall and 0-11 in the conference.

Despite the close finish, the Panthers led much of the contest. After the two sides battled back-and-forth early, Purchase finally managed to sneak ahead for good with 12:34 left in the first half at 17-16.

From there, the guests pushed their lead to as many as 12 points in the opening frame, leading 39-27 at halftime. That margin continued to grow in the second half, ballooning to 20 points, 71-51, with eight minutes to go. 

The Golden Eagles, who were desperately looking for their first conference win of the season, never gave up though. Over the final eight minutes of action, the hosts outscored Purchase, 28-13, and nearly eked out the victory. 

On the night, Purchase shot 47.7% from the field, while St. Joseph's-Long Island finished with a 42.0% total. The Panthers also enjoyed their usual advantages in points off turnovers (16-4), points in the paint (34-26) and fast-break points (14-2). 

Individually, Jorge Perdomo (JR/Bronx, NY) continued his hot steak, as he tallied a game-high 27 points on 10-of-17 shooting. Perdomo also went 6-of-12 from long range and recorded five rebounds, two blocks and two steals.

Additionally, Maxx Miller (SR/White Plains, NY) finished with 21 points and 11 rebounds. Elijah Lott (SR/Albany, NY) added 13 points, eight assists and seven rebounds, while Elijah Harris (SR/Flushing, NY) chipped in 12 points, nine rebounds and five assists.

For the Golden Eagles, Michael Darby (SO/Bayport, NY) scored a team-high 24 points and Frank Basile (SR/Islip, NY) added 20 points in the loss. 

Up next for the Panthers is more Skyline action, as the team hosts Maritime College on Feb. 8th at 1 p.m. You can follow that contest right here.