2/18/2007 - (Riverdale, NY) - If there were such thing as the perfect Hudson Valley Men's Athletic Conference (HVWAC) Basketball Championship Game, the 2007 version was it. There was drama, intensity, a courageous comeback, 11 ties, 12 lead changes, and one of the best finishes to any game in the history of the conference that kept a crowd that filled the Mount Saint Vincent Gymnasium to capacity on its feet for two halves of basketball, and an overtime session that saw second-seeded Berkeley College stun top-seeded St. Joseph's, 94-93 in the extra session to capture their second straight HVMAC Tournament crown. Berkeley overcame two losses to the Bears to the regular season to win the tournament championship during a 2006-07 season that was a near carbon copy of the 2005-06 campaign when St. Joseph's swept regular season play and lost to Berkeley in the Final.

Berkeley College (12-5) actually had a chance to put the game away during the opening minutes as the normally hot-shooting Bears, who shot 46% from the floor during an 86-59 win over the Pratt Institute during the HVMAC Semifinals on Saturday, missed their first 16 field goal attempts, but the Knights were only able to outscore St. Joseph's 10-2 during the stretch and held that lead with 13:43 remaining in the first half. At that point, senior Mike Donnelly (Queens, NY/Archbishop Molloy) hit a three-pointer to make it 10-5, and it was a game once again. Berkeley led by as many as nine points during the first half, but a 13-0 Bear run made it 18-14 St. Joseph's with 8:43 left in the first half. The Knights then extended the lead to five points with 40 seconds to play in the opening stanza after a James Dorismond (New York, NY/Bread & Roses) lay-up, but the Bears rallied to score the final three points of the half, and a Donnelly lay-up with five seconds to play made it a 36-34 Berkeley lead at the break.

St. Joseph's shot only 26% during the first 20 minutes, but five three-pointers by the Bears allowed the comeback, and St.. Joseph's also owned a 29-28 rebounding edge and forced 13 Berkeley turnovers while committing only 10. There were also a total of four ties and six lead changes during the first half.

The second half saw Berkeley try to blow the game open once again, outscoring St. Joseph's 12-2 during the first 4:18 to lead 48-36, but the Berkeley edge only seemed to inspire St. Joseph's. A 12-2 Bear run brought St. Joseph's to within two points, 50-48 with 13:13 to play. Three minutes later, a pair of Dane Bruce (Elmont, NY/Elmont HS) free throws gave the Bears a 57-56 lead ... and a wild finish was on.

Seven lead changes and four ties highlighted the final 10 minutes of play, and St. Joseph's appeared to gain control for good when Bruce hit a free throw with 53 seconds left in the game to put the Bears up 77-73. However, two Jazmel Blake (Brooklyn, NY/Stevenson HS) free throws with 40 seconds left in regulation made it 77-75. Then, a Donnelly turnover with 22 seconds left in the game gave Berkeley the ball with a chance to tie. Off a St. Joseph's time-out, Berkeley's Carlos Vasquez (New York, NY/Nuestra Senior de la Paz - P.R.) drove to the basket, drew the Bear defense, and found Blake wide open under the basket, who converted a lay-up with 11 seconds to play to tie the score at 77. St. Joseph's set up a play for the final shot and a chance to win in regulation, but a Donnelly shot at the buzzer fell just short.

A Vasquez three-pointer opened the overtime session and put Berkeley up, and the Knights never trailed during the extra session as they shot 56% in overtime, while the Bears shot 39%. Berkeley extended the lead to 90-83 with 46 seconds to play after a Dorismond lay-up, and it appeared that the Knights had the championship locked up, but one more Bear run remained. Donnelly hit two free throws with 34 seconds left to make it a five point game, and after a Berkeley miss, a Lukasz Klimaszewski (Queens, NY/St. John's Prep) jumper made it a three-point game once again with 24 seconds remaining. After Berkeley's Jonathan Pena (Brooklyn, NY/Park West HS) hit two free throws with 18 seconds to left, the lead was back to 94-89, but St. Joseph's scored the game's last four points to make it interesting. Bear senior Lukasz Cygan (Brooklyn, NY/Xaverian) hit a lay-up with three seconds to play to make it 94-91, and a second later he stole the Berkeley in-bounds pass and converted another lay-up to make it a one-point game. However, the Knights were able to successfully in-bound the ball to clinch the HVMAC crown.

Overall, Berkeley shot 40% from the floor, while the Bears converted 33% of their attempts, but St. Joseph's was able to put themselves in a position to win the game with 12 three pointers, and the Knights convereted only 24 of their 41 free throw attempts. Each team committed 18 turnovers, and St. Joseph's owned a 62-59 rebounding edge.

Vasquez earned Tournament MVP honors after an incredible Championship Game as he scored 21 points on 7 for 11 shooting, and grabbed eight rebounds, while hitting several clutch shots for Berkeley. Also having big games for the Knights were Dorismond, who scored a game-high 26 points and grabbed six rebounds, while junior Kempes Gilles (Jamaica, NY/Springfield Gardens HS) recorded a double-double with 13 points and 11 rebounds. Overall, five Knights scored in double figures.

For St. Joseph's (19-8), who were seeking their first ever HVMAC Tournament Championship, sophomore Ervin Maddox (Staten Island, NY/St. Peter's) scored 24 points and added a game-high six assists, while Donnelly scored 15 points. Two Bears recorded double-doubles as Bruce had an incrdible game with 17 points and a game-high 20 rebounds, and Klimaszewski added 13 points and 10 rebounds.