PLEASANTVILLE, NY – The Pace University men's basketball team battled back from a halftime deficit to take the lead near the midway mark of the second half, but the Setters could not hold off a late Adelphi surge, falling 61-51 to the Panthers.

Pace was led by senior forward Jonathan Merceus (Union, NJ/Union) (Union, NJ/Union)  who scored 17 points on 7-for-11 shooting from the floor while also grabbing six steals. Senior guard Kai Smith (Upper Marlboro, MD/St. Mary's Ryken) (Upper Marlboro, MD/St. Mary's Ryken) had 14 points, five rebounds, and five steals. Sophomore forward Jaylen Mann (Youngstown, OH/Liberty) (Youngstown, OH/Liberty) rounded out a trio of Setters in double figures with 10 points. Senior forward Jamaal James (Brooklyn, NY/Brooklyn College Academy) led the team with eight rebounds.

Trailing 33-26 with 57 seconds remaining in the first half, Pace (2-5, 1-3 NE-10) ripped off a 15-6 run during the next 9:10 to take a 41-39 lead with 11:47 to go in the second frame. The two teams battled back and forth during the next 4:40 seconds when a layup by Smith tied the game at 45-45 with 7:07 left. From there, Adelphi (1-4, 1-3 NE-10) would close the game on a 16-6 run.

Pace now heads out on the road for a Northeast-10 Conference match at Le Moyne on Saturday, December 7 at 2:00 pm in Syracuse, NY.