The City College of New York men's basketball team used a second quarter surge to defeat conference opponent CSI 81-76 on Tuesday evening.

City (8-5, 3-3 CUNYAC) started the game off strong with a 5-0 run, but CSI (8-4, 3-2 CUNYAC) was close behind. The Dolphins turned the early deficit into a 7-7 tie. Both teams battled back-and-forth as they searched for a conference victory. College of Staten Island put up a big first half and did not miss many shots. 

City shot .367 from the field during the first half, but CSI shot an impressive .529 to take a big 41-28 lead. CCNY went into the locker room hoping to bring some second half heroics into win the game. 

The Beavers came out quickly in the second half as they chipped away at the 13-point deficit. City put up big stops and turned the game around. While CSI shot over .500 in the first half, City shot .535 in the second half. With just three minutes remaining in the game, City still trailed 71-69, but then they finally took control. With 1:09 on the clock, City regained the lead 79-74. 

Then with 14 seconds remaining, CCNY was only up by three points, but CSI committed a costly foul that put City up by five. The Beavers then picked up their third conference win 81-76 over CSI.

Both David Solano and Khalil Hamer scored 20 points for the Beavers. Will Rhodes and Mark Richards recorded 10 and 16 respective points for City in the victory. Robbie Dionisio was one point away from a double-double as he tallied nine points and 11 rebounds. 

The Beavers return to Nat Holman Gymnasium for a conference match-up against Medgar Evers on Friday, January 8. Tip-off is set for 7 p.m.