HAMBURG, N.Y. – The Hilbert College men's basketball team made a great run at the end of the season. Six Hawks notched double figure scoring as the home team ran away with a win on Senior Day.
The 2018-19 Hawks raced to a 98-76 Allegheny Mountain College Conference victory over Pitt-Greensburg in their final game of the season. After trailing 42-37 at the break, Hilbert exploded in a 61-point second-half performance while holding the Bobcats to just 34 points.
The Hawks, who appeared in the postseason tournament the six previous years, battled to get back to the AMCCs again the final two weeks of the season. They went 5-1, with the solo defeat coming in the final millisecond of Game Five in the run, and today closed with a victory on Senior Day but fell short of securing a spot in playoffs.
A pair of four-year players were honored prior to the start of the game and they played like champions today.
Joseph Braniecki earned game-high scoring honors, hitting 7-of-11 from the floor, a pair of 3-point shots and made both free throw attempts to post 18 points.
Nicholas Parucki connected for 15 points, scoring seven buckets inside the arc and pulled down four offensive rebounds. They each left the court with a loud and boisterous round of applause from the very supportive fan base in attendance today.
"I am really happy for our seniors that came out with a win," said coach deGrandpre. "Nick and Joe were a big part of our program the last four years and they will be difficult to replace. Losing them to injury at the end of our season last year, but seeing them finish strong this year has been great. Our coaching staff is very excited for the future based on the way we played the last two weeks of the season, when we had our backs against the wall. This 5-1 run should motivate us and prepare our guys for next season."
Sophomore
Dre' Turnipseed (7-for-10 & five rebounds, two assist) and junior
Masia Phillips (5 assists, 7 rebounds) each netted 17 points while sophomore
Ryan Hogan (13 points) and junior
Hunter Martineau (10) padded the score book with double figure scoring.
The Hawks scored 44 points in the paint and 35 points off Greensburg's 24 turnovers. Hilbert held a 20-8 edge on the offensive glass and turned that into a 23 second-chance points.
Seven different Hawks worked for at least one of the offensive rebounds, led by Parucki's four while Turnipseed, Phillips and Martineau trailed with three each.
It should be noted as well that
Hunter Martineau was two assists away from earning his second triple double as he earned game-high honors in rebounding (11) and assists (8).
Greensburg's five-point half time lead was fueled by 46.9 percent shooting from the floor. The Bobcats improved to 53.6 percent in the second half, but they did not slow the Hawks scoring as Hilbert sank 24-37 (64.9%) in the final 20-minutes of their season.
Braniecki closes his career with a 7.4 ppg and 4.6 rpg average (606 points/376 rebounds). His 78 blocks place him at #3 All Time and his .541 puts him at #5 in field goal percentage.
Parucki holds a 10.9 ppg and 3.3 rpg career average (873 points/266 rebounds). His 61 blocks positions him at #5.
Be sure to stay up-to-date on all your Hilbert Hawk scores and awards by following @HilbertAthletic on Twitter and by liking the "Hilbert College Athletics" Facebook page. Additionally, fans of the Hawks who have an Apple device can receive push notification from the newly created Hilbert College Hawks iOS SIDEARM mobile App which can be found in the Apple Store and ITunes.
