Rochester, N.Y. – The Roberts Wesleyan men's basketball team staged a 16 point second half comeback Wednesday night to defeat East Coast Conference opponent Mercy College, 71-63.
 
Down 45-29 with under 17 minutes to play in the second half the Redhawks began their comeback attempt with a 13-4 run that began with a Zack Panebianco three-pointer. That spark cut the Mercy lead to just seven points with 12 minutes remaining in the game and would propel Roberts to finally take the lead with only four minutes left on the clock. The Redhawks wouldn't look back as they controlled the lead until the final whistle to pick up their second win of the season and first win in the conference.
 
A woeful first half shooting performance put the Redhawks in a bind as the team went just 8-of-27 (29.6%) from the field and 5-for-14 (35.7%) from the free throw line. While Roberts struggled to score, Mercy found success in the paint with senior forward William Robinson who scored 20 points and pulled down 10 rebounds while helping the team shoot over 50-percent from the field in the first half. At the break, the Mavericks held a 38-23 lead.
 
The Redhawks made up for the poor shooting as they found a rhythm in the second half going 18-for-24 (75%) from the field while holding Mercy to just 38-percent shooting. The red and black outscored the Mavericks 48-25 in the second half.
 
Malik Dare (18 pts.), Isaiah Lewis (16 pts.) and Panebianco (13 pts.) all scored in double digits. Dare also grabbed six rebounds on the night.
 
Despite the difficulties from the free-throw line in the first half, the Redhawks were able to hit the shots they needed down the stretch to ensure the victory. The team was 10-for-16 from the charity stripe in the second half.
 
Roberts Wesleyan (2-11) look to stay in the win column when they travel to face LIU Post on Saturday at 4 p.m.