Throggs Neck, NY—The Sage Colleges' men's basketball team visited Maritime College on Saturday afternoon in the final Skyline Conference regular-season contest. After trailing 46-43 at the half, Sage posted a strong second half and rolled to the 94-76 win. The Gators will bring a five-game win streak into the Skyline Conference Tournament, having posted a 12-4 record in Skyline play and have earned the top seed in the North Division and winning the regular-season title in the division. Sage is now 16-9 overall, while Maritime drops to 10-14 overall and 5-11 in the league.

For the third time this season, Sage's senior forward Marcus Patterson (Bronx, NY/Mount Saint Michael Academy) turned in a 30 point performance. He led the Gators after connecting for an 11-23 effort from the floor and was a perfect 8-8 from the line. He also added six rebounds to help the Gators to the key league win. Patterson is making his climb in the program's all-time record book and after his showing on Saturday has 986 career points and is now the team's third all-time leading scorer after he passed Melvin Ford (976 points, 2012-2016). Patterson has also hauled in 543 boards, which ranks second all-time having made his 100^th appearance at Sage against Maritime.

Senior forward Rob Mills (Newburgh, NY/Newburgh Free Academy) added 21 points for Sage with a 7-12 performance from the floor with four baskets from three point range. Joining him in double-digit scoring was junior guard Jordan Devaughn (Jacksonville, FL/Flora McDonald Academy) as he finished with 13 points. Junior center Thiago Conceicao (El Portal, FL/Westwood Christian) added 10 points for the Gators with four boards and five blocked shots. Conceicao leads the team this season with his 46 blocked shots which and is currently third on the Gator single-season record book.

Next up for the Gators is the 2017 Skyline Conference Tournament, which opens on Tuesday, February 21 with the six-team field being announced with pairings this evening. The first round victors will meet in the semifinals on Thursday, February 23 and the championship taking place on Saturday, February 25 at the home court of the highest remaining seeded team. Sage, which won the league's tournament and regular-season crown in 2015 is appearing in the Skyline Tournament for the fifth straight year.

Link to Skyline Men's Basketball Championship Page