PURCHASE, N.Y. - The Purchase College men's basketball team kicked off the 2024-25 season in epic fashion Saturday afternoon, as they earned an impressive comeback win over Lehman College on the same day four former men's basketball teams were put into the Hall of Fame.

In a game that featured many twists and turns, the beginning started rather ordinary. The visitors jumped out to a big first-half lead, leading by as many as 12 points during the opening six minutes.

Over the rest of the frame, the margin ebbed and flowed between high single digits and low double digits, before the Lightning eventually carried a 10-point margin into the midway break, 39-29.

Following some halftime adjustments, the Blue and Orange were a squad reborn. They opened the second with 11-straight points to grab the lead for the first time all game.

From that point on, neither side never led by more than six points the remainder of the half.

During the closing minute of regulation, Purchase trailed 68-66 before a fastbreak steal and layup from Trey Skeete (JR/Brooklyn, NY) tied things up with 41 seconds to go.

On defense, Matthew Phillips (SR/Bronx, NY) kept things level as he blocked a shot with 24 seconds remaining, setting up one last charge from the hosts.

They got two cracks at winning during the final seconds, including a decent looking 3-pointer and two free throws with no time left on the clock ... but the chances all missed the mark as we went to overtime.

During the extra period, tired legs kicked in as both sides went scoreless for the first three plus minutes. However, once the Panthers finally found the basket, the floodgates opened to the tune of 12 points over the final 1:48 of overtime.

In the end, a couple of clutch 3's and free throw shooting lifted the hosts to the improbable win to begin the year.

Overall, the Panthers finished with a 37.3 shooting percentage compared to Lehman's 41.1%. In fact, the guests won many of the battles on the night, including rebounding and free throws. 

The edge for the Blue and Orange was on the deep ball, as they made 11 3's compared to just six for the Lightning.

Individually, Chad Duke (JR/Brooklyn, NY) paced all players with a game-high 22 points, while grabbing five boards.

Two players making their Panther debuts finished with double-digit points, as Tyler Bond (JR/Jamaica, NY) added 16 points and Gabe Bristow (JR/Poughkeepsie, NY) tallied 12 points.

Phillips finished with a well-rounded game as he collected nine points, four rebounds, four assists and four blocks.

In total, Purchase led for just under three minutes out of 45 possible minutes on the day, yet its spirit never wavered. Perhaps it was aided by the fantastic Hall of Fame Ceremony, which took place before the game and during halftime.

On the day, the Panthers welcomed back over two dozen former student-athletes and coaches from the four men's basketball teams that won Skyline Conference titles during the early 2010's. 

The four squads became the first teams to enter our Hall of Fame, as it continues to grow in size each year. Before the contest, the Hall of Famers joined the staff and team for a pregame brunch, before being honored in front of hundreds of fans at halftime.

Each coach and player collected a commemorative plague as celebratory words were read and photos were taken to lock in their newly minted legacies.

With the backdrop of the great teams that have come before, the 2024-25 team made its own mark in the story to come.

With the win, the Panthers moved to 1-0 overall, while Lehman dropped to 2-2. The win also marked the first of many for first-year head coach Jack Dignan, as he arrived just a few months back from Alfred State.

Up next for the men's basketball team is a return to home action on November 19th, as it hosts Hunter College at 7 p.m.