SYRACUSE, N.Y. - The Saint Michael's College men's basketball team trimmed a 20-point deficit to six in the final two minutes on Wednesday before suffering an 83-72 setback against Le Moyne College on Ted Grant Court in Northeast-10 Conference play. The Dolphins were ninth in this week's D2SIDA East Region Media Poll, while the Purple Knights received a vote toward the rankings.

RECORDS

• Saint Michael's (8-7, 2-5 NE10), Le Moyne (9-7, 6-2 NE10)

SAINT MICHAEL'S LEADERS

• Junior Romar Reid (Mount Vernon, N.Y./Woodstock Academy/Manhattan), 16 points, 5 rebounds, 5 assists, 3 steals, 4-for-9 field goals, 2-for-4 three-pointers, 6-for-9 free throws
• Junior Kasai Brown (Brooklyn, N.Y./Millbrook School), 15 points, 3 assists, 3 steals
• Sophomore CJ Crews (Tampa, Fla./Bayshore Christian School), 14 points, 4 rebounds, 2 steals, 4-for-8 three-pointers
• Junior Joël Kabimba (Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of the Congo/Middleburg Academy/Bryant), 13 points, 11 rebounds, 3 offensive rebounds, 4-for-7 field goals, 5-for-7 free throws
• Sophomore Jacob Duniver (Fredericksburg, Va./Woodstock Academy), 12 points, 6 rebounds, 4-for-6 three-pointers
• Senior Dario Milojevic (Windsor, Ontario/Herman Academy/Mississippi Valley State), 4 rebounds

OPPONENT LEADERS

• Junior Luke Sutherland, 18 points, 7-for-11 field goals
• Senior Xavier Wilson, 16 points, 7 rebounds, 3 assists, 3 steals, 3 blocks, 5-for-7 field goals, 6-for-10 free throws
• Redshirt sophomore Kevin Constant, 10 points, 8 rebounds, 6-for-8 free throws
• Graduate student Mike DePersia, 10 points, 4 steals
• Graduate student Isaiah Salter, 8 points, 5 rebounds, 4 steals

GAME FACTS

• In a series that dates back to 1951, the teams met for the 90th time. Le Moyne holds a 46-44 edge.
• Saint Michael's shot 12-for-29 (41.4%) from three-point range to Le Moyne's 5-for-21 effort (23.8%), while the hosts were 28-of-39 on free throws to the Purple Knights' 12-for-19.
• All five Purple Knight starters scored in double figures for the first time since an overtime contest on Feb. 20, 2016, and in a game decided in regulation for the first time since Jan. 12, 2016.
• Kabimba nearly had a double-double in the second half alone, turning in all 13 of his points and nine rebounds. It was his second consecutive double-double.

THE ACTION

• The Purple Knights wiped out an early 8-1 deficit thanks to three-pointers by Brown and Duniver and a pair of free throws from Reid, making it 10-9 in favor of the hosts at 14:48 of the first half.
• Le Moyne did not lead again by more than six points until DePersia's triple created a 26-17 margin at 8:47, and two DePersia free throws extended the lead to 41-28 at 1:55. Reid knocked down a freebie at two seconds to send his team into the locker room down 41-29.
• Behind six Kabimba points, Saint Michael's started the second half on an 8-1 run to draw within 42-37 at 18:02.
• After Le Moyne pushed its lead back to 11, Brown made back-to-back jumpers to cap a 6-0 spurt, making it 48-43 by 15:04.
• The Dolphins scored the next 15 points, with sophomore Zy'Ever Wingfield netting five, pushing the lead to 20 with 10:01 remaining.
• Constant's free throw still had the hosts ahead by a 73-58 count with 2:39 left before the Purple Knights staged a furious rally.
• Crews bookended three-pointers around a Kabimba lay-in to bring his team within seven points at 1:39, and Duniver's triple made it 75-69 at 1:20.
• A three by Reid at 47 seconds again had Saint Michael's down just six, at 78-72, but it came no closer, and the hosts salted the game away at the line.

NEXT SAINT MICHAEL'S GAME

• Saturday vs. Southern New Hampshire University, 3:30 p.m.