After being defeated by Lehman College on February 25 at the Doghouse, the John Jay Bloodhounds believed their season was over. Now, on March 7, they are heading to the NCAA Tournament after defeating #1 seeded Baruch College at ARC Arena to capture the program’s second CUNYAC championship and its first since 2008. 

“Accidents happen on purpose,” Bloodhound’s Championship MVP junior Jamir ‘Shifty’ Stewart stated after the game. “I told my teammates (after the news) that it’s up. Like let’s go get after it, let’s get in the gym and work. I owe it all to them.” 

The conference all-star Stewart led the way for John Jay, scoring 23 points in the game. 

John Jay was not originally supposed to be playing in the championship game on February 28. In order to play at the collegiate level, a student athlete must be enrolled in at least 12 credits and maintain a 2.0 GPA. CUNY released a statement on Wednesday evening stating that a Lehman athlete that played in the semifinal game against John Jay was not eligible after withdrawing from classes, therefore not meeting the full-time student requirement in order to play. As a result, the school was disqualified and John Jay was given a second chance to dance… and they did not let their fans down. 

Before the game, Head Coach Ryan Hyland stated to his players, “(I’m) not nervous. We’re not supposed to even be here. This is the loosest I’ve felt, and that I have seen you guys before a game all year. Let’s just go out there, and have fun.” 

Coach stated this knowing that, before this game, he had never won a career away game against Baruch College. That statement translated directly into the game as John Jay started out on a 9-2 run against the #1 seeded and 4-time defending CUNYAC Champion. However, Baruch stormed back furiously and ended up taking the lead into halftime at 37-30. 

After a tight second-half, John Jay and Baruch had come within one point of each-other around the 12:30 minute mark. The Bloodhound’s Coach Hyland had been holding on to a particular defense for most of the year, and only used it during one possession during regular season conference play. After implementing this special defense called a ‘1-3-1’ zone, John Jay took the lead, outscoring the Bearcats 22-3 during this stretch, eventually pulling away from Baruch and extending their improbable season. 

As the clock kept ticking away, the Bloodhound celebration was well underway as former players, students, alumni, parents & loved ones all rejoiced as the Bloodhounds won their first title in nearly two decades, & their second title in program history. 

Senior Captain Jordan Evelyn exclaimed in tears, “They don’t know my pain. They don’t know our pain, and that’s why they can see these tears. I did this for us!” 

Shortly following, the final buzzer sounded, and John Jay had defeated Baruch 80-70. The Bearcats received their second place trophies for a phenomenal season and for a phenomenal run. Baruch Head Coach John Alesi had led the Bearcats to four consecutive CUNYAC tournament titles and was recently named as Coach of the Year after he led the Bearcats to the #1 seed in the tournament. Shortly after, the Bloodhounds received their championship trophy, The Dutch Shoe, which is a staple of men’s basketball for the CUNYAC conference. Jamir Stewart was also named MVP for his efforts. 

For Ryan Hyland, it is his first conference tournament championship as head coach of the Bloodhounds and his first since he was a player at Catholic University. 

The Bloodhounds will continue in the NCAA Division III Tournament on March 7 against Christopher Newport University.