PLEASANTVILLE, N.Y. -- In the last 30 seconds of play, the Pace men's basketball team shot 4-for-6 from the foul line to close out an exciting 60-56 victory over visiting College of Staten Island on Sunday afternoon at the Goldstein Fitness Center. Senior guard Brandon Powell (Middletown, N.Y./Pine Bush / FDU) led with 23 points, 5-for-5 from beyond the arc and 4-for-6 from the foul line, 3-for-4 in those waning seconds of action. Powell also added five rounds and a steal. Grad forward Marc Dadika (Saddle Brook, N.J./Saint Mary's Rutherford / FDU) added 19 points, shooting 7-for-11 from the floor, 4-for-6 from the stripe. 

With the win, the Setters advance to 5-1 on the season overall. 

Junior guard Lyron Bennett (Boston, Mass./Tech Boston / Southern Connecticut State) recorded five assists. Senior forward Bryan Powell (Middletown, N.Y./Canterbury School) led with 10 rebounds and five blocks. Dadika also added six boards to his stat line.

For the Dolphins (1-4), senior guard Chris Velasquez played the entire 40 minutes and led with 21 points on 9-for-12 shooting, 3-for-6 from three. Sophomore forward Messiah Mallory had 14 points. 

The game was tied 32-32 at halftime with both Dadika and Brandon Powell (Middletown, N.Y./Pine Bush / FDU) with 12 each. The Blue and Gold were down by six with just under three minutes remaining in the first half. A three-ball from sophomore guard/forward Justin O'Neill (Bedford, N.H./Tilton School) set up by Bryan Powell (Middletown, N.Y./Canterbury School) cut the differential to three, 30-27 with 1:55 remaining. Bryan Powell (Middletown, N.Y./Canterbury School) put up a layup after a missed O'Neill three-ball to bring it to 30-2 with :51 seconds on the clock. The Setters took a lead at 27 seconds as Brandon Powell (Middletown, N.Y./Pine Bush / FDU) blocked a Dolphin layup attempt, grabbed the rebound and fed it to his brother, Bryan who took it down for a 3-pointer.

Mallory had the last say in the half for Staten Island with a jumper down low. He drew the foul for the extra point, but missed, keeping the score knotted at 32 going into the break.

Pace regained a steady lead in the game with 3:01 left as a Dadika layup made it 54-49, capping a 15-4, six-minute Setter run. Pace had been down, 45-39. 

As the Setters led 55-52, a three from Staten Island's Velsasquez made it a one-point game with 1:17 remaining.  Dadika answered with a putback layup off one of Brandon Powell's (Middletown, N.Y./Pine Bush / FDU) two missed shots for the game giving Pace a 57-54 lead with 54 seconds left and the momentum in the possession game that would take over in the last minute of action. The Dolphins' three-point attempt to tie it up with five seconds on the clock was blocked by freshman guard Jabari Nurse (Randolph, Mass./New Hampton Prep) who had just subbed in the game for Dadika. 

Senior guard Adeleye Oyekanmi (Staten Island, NY/Curtis), playing against his brother Michael Oyekanmi on Staten Island, missed the first of two free throws to seal up the win in Pace's favor, 60-56. 

Next up, the Setters will hit the road for a Wednesday night tilt at Southern Connecticut State. Game time is 7:30 p.m. for this NE10 match up.