Hartwick Men's Basketball Takes Down #22 Ithaca 100-96 In Overtime
ITHACA, NY - Junior guard Mark Blazek (Erie, PA/Erie Cathedral Prep) scored nine of his season-high 32 points in overtime to lift Hartwick's men's basketball team to a wild 100-96 win at nationally 22nd ranked Ithaca on Saturday at Ben Light Gymnasium. With the win, the Hawks snap a 12-game winless streak against the Bombers dating back to 2004-05 and move into a third-place tie with Stevens, just one game in the win column behind IC and St. John Fisher (both 6-2).
Blazek finished the game hitting 12-of-22 from the field and 6-of-7 from the line to go along with four assists. Freshman Jared Suderley (Newport, NY/West Canada Valley) contributed 21 points and junior Chris Ryder (Port Washington, NY/Port Washington) added 18 for the Hawks.
The score was tied 10 times in the game and the lead changed hands 15 times, including on five occasions in the extra period before Hartwick prevailed. The Bombers gained the upper hand, 92-89, on a three-point basket from Jordan Marcus with 3:44 to go in the extra session but two free throws from Ryder and a bucket from Blazek gave 'Wick a 93-92 edge one minute later.
Rossi sank a layup at the other end for IC but Blazek would regain the edge for the Hawks with two from the line with 2:10 showing on the clock. Neither team converted on their next possessions before a Barera jumper gave the hosts their final lead of the night, 96-95, with 1:29 to go.
On Hartwick's next trip down the floor, Ryder drilled a jumper to put the Blue and White in front for good with 64 seconds left. Junior guard Andres Carpio (Beacon, NY/Lock Haven Univ.) came up with a steal on the defensive end and the Hawks took as much time off the clock as possible before Blazek attempted a jumper with eight ticks left. His shot was off the mark, but Suderley came down with a huge offensive rebound to keep possession and Blazek nailed both free throws after an IC foul for a 99-96 lead with five seconds remaining.
Carpio struck again with another steal before IC could get off a shot and the Bombers fouled Blazek with two seconds left. A miss on his first attempt from the line gave IC a glimmer of hope, but Blazek sank his second to make it a two-possession game and put the game away.
Both teams shot over 50% in the game. The Hawks hit 56% (40-of-71) of their shots. The Bombers shot 52% (37-for-71) and made 93% (13-of-14) of their free throws.
In the first half of play, the Hawks trailed the Bombers by as many as nine points, 36-27, with less than five minutes left, but battled back to cut the deficit to five points at intermission, 44-39.
Following an Ithaca basket to start the second half, Hartwick erupted for a 21-4 run over the next five minutes to take a 60-50 lead. Blazek and Carpio combined for 16 points and four three-pointers in the spurt.
The Bombers quickly scored seven consecutive points to close the gap but the Hawks maintained their lead until the 7:46 mark when the hosts tied it at 69-69. The game featured five ties and four lead changes through regulation time. With the score 82-82, freshman Anthony Keane (Staten Island, NY/Monsignor Farrell) knocked down a three for the Hawks to give them a three-point edge with less than three minutes to go.
Phil Barera hit a jumper for IC and Ryder made two from the line for the Hawks before Andre Oztemel hit a Bomber three-pointer with 1:16 remaining for the final points of the half. Both teams missed shots on their final possessions with Keane blocking Barera's effort before the final horn.
Barera ended the game with a game-high 38 points on 19-of-25 shooting for Ithaca. He also added a game-high 11 rebounds. Sean Rossi contributed 20 points and 13 assists.
Suderley made 10 of his 20 shots from the field on the night and he added eight rebounds. Ryder added seven boards to go along with his 18 points. Carpio and Keane both finished with 11 points. Carpio added four assists, four boards, and three steals. Keane had four rebounds, three assists, and three steals.