WILKES-BARRE, PA (February 17, 2024) --Senior Carmine Castiello sparked the King's College men's basketball team in his final game in McGrane Gymnasium as the Monarchs upset Misericordia University, 80-78, in the Middle Atlantic Conference Freedom (MAC Freedom) contest on Saturday afternoon. The Monarchs wrap up their season 13-12 overall and 5-9 in the conference, while the Cougars drop to 13-12 and 7-7.
 
Misericordia (13-12, 7-7 MAC Freedom) opened the game with a 10-0 run, but King's (13-12, 5-9 MAC Freedom) clawed their way back behind 10 points from Castiello as the Monarchs got within two, 12-10, with 13:34 to go in the first. The Cougars regained their double-digit edge, 33-17, with 7:20 left before the break. Misericordia rebuilt their advantage, but with King's facing a 41-28 deficit, the Monarchs opened the scoring with nine unanswered points to make it a two-possession game, 41-37, with 1:09 left in the half. The teams traded trips to the free throw line in the final ticks as King's trailed, 45-39, heading into the locker room.
 
The momentum shifted in favor of the Monarchs to start the second with a 10-0 run over the first 2:45 of the half. Misericordia hit a three to make it a one-point game, but King's had another answer with another stretch of six unanswered points to keep the Cougars at bay. The teams went back-and-forth in the contest, making it an instant MAC Freedom classic between the two programs, but King's broke free with a couple conversions at the free throw line to go ahead, 66-57, with 10:00 to play.
 
The visiting Cougars finally made it a two-point game with 5:35 left to play, but scores from Patrick Bennie and Chris Patton rebuilt the King's advantage to 76-70 with 3:29 remaining. Misericordia scored the next five to close within one, 76-75, but Patton delivered a layup and hit one from the charity stripe to push the Monarchs edge to 79-75 with 21 ticks left. Misericordia drained a three with 15 seconds left, but Castiello hit his free throw and the defensive efforts stifled a game-tying basket as King's secured the win, 80-78, in the MAC Freedom contest.
 
Patton led all scorers with 23 points, adding nine rebounds, two assists, and a block, while Castiello posted 22 points, eight boards, three assists, and a steal. Both Patrick Bennie and Eamonn Walsh contributed 11 points, with Bennie tallying seven rebounds, two assists, a block, and a steal and Walsh added eight rebounds and five helpers
 
Kevin Lazdowsky paced the Cougars with 19 points, adding five boards, while both Joseph Baldachino and Nate Kreitzer tallied 3 points, with Kreitzer putting up six boards and eight assists with Misericordia's lone steal in the loss.
 
King's shot a solid 39.4% from the floor and 34.8% from three, handing out 16 helpers on their 26 field goals, while also having the edge in the rebounding margin, 43-42, over Misericordia. The defense forced 10 turnovers while committing just four themselves, resulting in a 10-3 edge in points off turnovers. Additionally, King's had the advantage in points in the paint, 28-16, over Misericordia.