Ithaca Returns to E8 Title Game with 70-63 Victory Over Fisher
HOBOKEN, N.J. – The second-seeded Ithaca College men’s basketball team (18-8) will return to the Empire 8 Championship Tournament title game after defeating third-seeded St. John Fisher (17-9), 70-63, on Friday at top-seeded Stevens Institute of Technology.
Senior Sean Rossi became the NCAA Division III record holder in assists with a nine-assist performance. Rossi was tied with the former record of 917 entering the contest and now has a career tally of 926 to own the record outright.
Ithaca’s victory, that snapped the Cardinals’ eight-game winning streak, was the Bombers’ first Empire 8 Tournament win over St. John Fisher.
The two teams met twice previously this year, with Ithaca taking both. However, those games were only decided by a combined five-points, and Friday's affair was no different. The seven-point contest was tight throughout, with Ithaca seeing its largest lead of 11 points in the second half.
Ithaca junior Frank Mitchell led the game with 21 points. Senior Eli Maravich added 13 and classmates Travis Warech and Andrei Oztemel each had 10. Warech had a Bomber-best seven rebounds and Mitchell tallied six.
Fisher's Justin Plata and Thad Wier set the tone early for their team, as the two combined for the Cardinals' first 20 points. They would go on to finish first and second in scoring, as Plata ended his final game with 20 points and was just one rebound shy of the double-double, grabbing nine boards. Wier finished with 17 points, including a 5-for-10 showing from beyond the arc. Rookie of the Year Chaz Lott finished the game with 12 points, as Fisher's only other scorer to score in double-digits.
The Bombers held an early edge, but 13 unanswered Fisher points powered the Cardinals ahead, 22-13, at 7:26 of the first. Ithaca answered with nine straight to knot action at 22. The teams exchanged buckets down the stretch. A Rossi jumper at the horn pulled the Bombers within one, 31-30, at intermission.
A Mitchell block returned for a Tom Sweeney basket put the Bombers ahead indefinitely with the first field goal of the second stint. Ithaca pulled ahead by eight five minutes into play and went on to claim a double-digit lead, 53-42, at 8:20. The Cardinals thrice cut within six, lastly at 2:44. Ithaca drained 9-for-11 from the charity stripe over the final 3:10 of play to seal its second straight trip to the title game.
Ithaca shot 52 percent from the field in the second half to outscore the Cardinals by eight, 40-32. For the game, the Cardinals shot 44.8 percent from the floor to the Bombers’ 43.9 percent.
The Bombers will play the Ducks at 3 p.m. Saturday with an automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament on the line.