For the first time since 1987, the Old Westbury Men’s Basketball team captured the ECAC Metro Region Championship. After an unfortunate loss to Farmingdale State in the Skyline Conference tournament, Old Westbury was selected as the number two seed in the ECAC tournament. Their first opponent was the Baruch Bearcats, the number seven seed.
Old Westbury started off its title run strong, defeating the Bearcats 88-72. The team had shot fifty-five percent from the field (33-60), and 84.2 percent from the free-throw line (16-19). Kerel Mitchell had led all scorers with twenty points, and also had a career best six steals. Darnell Chavis added eighteen points, and Tyrik Tucker followed with fifteen points. Rashawn McCarthy added eleven points, six rebounds and tied a career high with six assists. The Panthers’ next challenge was the New Jersey City Gothic Knights.
The Panthers continued their excellent ball playing, defeating New Jersey City 66-52. This win lifted the Panthers to 24-4, giving them the best record in school history, besting the 23-5 record previously set by the 1985-86 team. Rashawn McCarthy scored a game high sixteen points, with fourteen of those points coming in the second half. Darnell Chavis had nine points, seven rebounds and two steals from off the bench. The team continued its hot shooting, shooting 52.3 percent from the field (23-44), including shooting a stellar 61.9 percent in the second half (13-21). This victory propelled the Panthers’ to the championship round, where they faced the number one seeded Richard Stockton Ospreys.
Both the Panthers and the Ospreys played a hard fought game, but Old Westbury held on to a victorious in a 74-73 win over Richard Stockton. The Panthers came out the gates roaring, going on a 7-0 run to start the game, with Rashawn McCarthy scoring the first five points of the game. The Ospreys did not go quietly, however. Josh Blamon led Richard Stockton in a 14-6 run, which gave them the lead at the 8:29 mark of the game. This lead would be short lived, though, as Old Westbury took the lead in the beginning of the second half, 37-36. They led for the remainder of the game, and eventually went on to become the ECAC Metro region champions.
The Old Westbury Men’s basketball program had one of its best years in program history. They went 21-3 in the regular season, had a top five nationally ranked offense during the regular season, and saw the team set its best record in school history at 25-4, as well as capture their first ECAC championship in twenty-six years. Many on the team had individual feats as well. Tyrik Tucker and Kerel Mitchell were two of the top forty leading scorers in the nation, with Tucker winning the Skyline Conference player of the year award. Darnell Chavis took home the ECAC tournament’s Most Outstanding Player award. The Panthers will now enjoy the off-season on a good note as the 2013 ECAC Metro Region champions, and can regroup for next season.