PURCHASE, N.Y. –The Purchase College men's basketball team dropped an 76-57 Skyline Conference decision against the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy at home Wednesday night.
 
Panther senior Eric Block (Warwick, NY) tied the game-high points (17) to pace the Purchase offense. The 5-foot-10-inch guard came off the bench to connect on 5-of-7 shooting from beyond the arc, while chipping in defensively with six rebounds. Junior forward Elijah Holmes (Brooklyn, NY) finished wth 12 points, five boards and a trio of steals. Sophomore forward Terrence Mason (Greenburgh, NY) rounded out the double-digit scoring for Purchase with 10 points, while grabbing a team-best seven rebounds.  

Blaine McDonough and Isaac Vencel led the way for USMMA with 17 points apiece. McDonough had an impressive night crashing the boards, hauling in a game-high 19 rebounds, including seven on the offensive end. Vencel paced the Mariners in assists (6) and steals (2), while Bryce Bristow netted 13 poinns and 11 rebounds.    

Purchase was held to 32.3% shooting from the field for the game. The Panthers entered the break behind the visitors, 39-23, and trailed by as much as 22 in the second half. 

With the win, Merchant Marine (12-8, 9-4 Skyline) holds the No. 2 seed in the Skyline North Division and No. 4 overall for the upcoming postseason tournament.  

Wednesday's game—Purchase's fifth in just nine days—dropped the Panthers to 4-16 overall and 4-9 in the Skyline. The window for the postseason is quickly closing but there's still hope. Purchase would need to win its final three games of the season, while some of the higher-seeded teams suffer losses. 

The Panthers will play host to Mount Saint Mary for the first of these must-win matchups. Tip-off is slated for this Saturday at noon.