An acrobatic alley-oop during Tuesday night’s home win over Farmingdale State landed the SJC Bears men’s basketball team on ESPN‘s “SportsCenter” Top 10 plays of the day.
Bears guard Dimitri Sirakis fed forward Stephane Etheart on the sensational play that helped fuel the Bears’ 71-70 victory over the defending Skyline Conference champs. Etheart, a 6-foot-five sophomore out of St. Francis Prep, jumped while reaching his right arm well over his head to catch the ball, and then followed through with the thunderous dunk.
The alley-oop pass was one of Sirakis’ career-high eight assists.
Hey @espn @espn_chris, how do we get my guys from @SJCBears on Top 10 with this one? #SJCNY #BearWitnessSJC https://t.co/HWH3ERn5sI
— James Lally (@JamesLallySJC) November 22, 2017
D-III game, D-I slam. #SCtop10 pic.twitter.com/7rupfXCmay
— SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) November 22, 2017
“To get a Top 10 highlight on ‘SportsCenter‘ is probably every athlete’s dream, and we’re incredibly proud to have been featured,” said SJC Brooklyn’s Manager of Athletic Communications Anthony Macapugay. “In less than 24 hours, the highlight has received nearly a million views across all their platforms. Not only was it truly a special play, but it helped change the momentum of the game.”
Macapugay sent an email with footage of the play to ESPN late Tuesday night, where it quickly got the attention it deserves.
“Last night was an exciting game for us at The Hill Center,” added SJC Brooklyn’s Director of Athletics and Recreation James Lally. “Going against the preseason top seed and to win in the last second was a testament to how hard our guys worked this off-season and how mentally prepared they are for this season. To top things off, to have a play highlighted by “SportsCenter” Top 10 is very special. That’s going to be a lifetime memory for this team. Not too many student-athletes get to add this recognition to their list of accomplishments, and I couldn’t be happier for our guys to have the opportunity to experience this.”
