Fisher Downs Hartwick; Four Way-Tie For Final Two Playoff Spots
Following Friday night action, the playoff picture currently consists of Ithaca and Hartwick as the top two seeds. Hartwick will host the tournament due to a conflict with top-seeded Ithaca's court.
Stevens, St. John FIsher, Utica and Nazareth are all tied at 7-6 with one game left each and will be vying for #3/#4 seeds. Because Stevens and SJFC play each other on Saturday there is the possibility of three-way ties or two-way ties.
If Stevens/Utica/Nazareth all finish 8-6…They all split head to head. Naz would be #3 seed because of win over Ithaca. Then Utica would be #4 because of win over Hartwick.
If SJFC/Utica/Naz all finish 8-6…they all split head to head. But Fisher and Naz would each have a win over Ithaca and would be in. Fisher would be #3 because of win over Hartwick and Naz would be #4.
If Stevens/Utica/Nazareth all finish 7-7 and vie for #4 seed…they split head to head. All teams would be 0-2 verse Ithaca and would then be compared to Hartwick. Utica would clinch #4 due to win over Hartwick.
If SJFC/Utica/Naz all finish 7-7…they split head to head. Fisher would be #4because win over Ithaca.
If SJFC/Utica tie at 8-6… Fisher would be #3 because win over Ithaca. Utica #4
If SJFC/Naz tie at 8-6… Fisher #3 because win over Hartwick. Naz #4.
If Stevens/Utica tie 8-6…Utica #3 due to win over Hartwick. Stevens #4
If Stevens/Nazareth tie 8-6….Nazareth #3 because win over Ithaca. Stevens #4.
St. John FIsher 68, Hartwick 57
Portia Velasco scored a career-high 34 points, as the St. John Fisher College women’s basketball team defeated the Hartwick College Hawks 68-57 on Friday night.
Velasco had the hot hand in the game, as she went a perfect 10-for-10 from the floor in the outing. The sophomore, who has made 14-consecutive field goals between this game and Tuesday’s game at Nazareth, only missed twice on the night, as she shot 12-for-14 from the charity stripe. It was the most points scored by a Fisher player since Colleen Maloney netted 35 during the 2010-11 season in a 70-68 overtime win against Ramapo College.
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Ithaca 65, Utica 58
The Ithaca College women's basketball team (22-2, 12-1 Empire 8) held off visiting Utica (12-12, 7-6 Empire 8) for a 65-58 win Friday night at Ben Light Gymnasium.
The game featured nine ties with Utica threatening to snap Ithaca's now nine-game winning streak. The first half bounced back-and-forth. Ithaca owned an eight-point advantage at 11:45, but the Pioneers answered to take the lead four minutes later. A 6-0 Ithaca streak closed out the half in its favor, 30-29. Utica reclaimed the lead early in the second stint and led by as many as six. The Bombers surged to twice knot action before Ithaca secured the lead indefinitely.
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Nazareth 68, Elmira 56
The Golden Flyers keep their playoff hopes alive with a 68-56 win over Elmira.
Elmira had a seven point lead, 18-11, with 11:01 remaining in the first-half before Nazareth went on a 13-2 run to go ahead 24-20 with 6:24 left before the break. Nazareth led 32-28 at the half and never trailed in the second.
Nazareth shot an impressive 53% from the field and out-rebounded the Soaring Eagles 37-28.
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Stevens 74, Alfred 56
Junior forward Avis Benjamin led four players in double figures as the Stevens Institute of Technology women's basketball team improved to 7-6 in the Empire 8 and 13-11 overall with a 74-56 win at Alfred University Friday night.
After the Ducks opened an 11-point lead seven minutes into the game, Alfred came back to get the game within two points at halftime. The Saxons closed the final 3:28 of the period on a 10-2 run, making it 33-31 at the break.
In the second, Stevens slowly began to extend the margin. A three-pointer by the Ducks pushed the lead to seven at the 19:05 mark, and following a Saxon triple to get back within four points, back-to-back buckets by Stevns pushed the advantage back to eight.
A layup gave the Ducks their first double-digit lead of the second half at the 12:13 mark, and a traditional three-point play made it 60-45 Ducks with 9:10 remaining to put the game out of reach.
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