Cardinals, Ducks, Pioneers and Saxons Secure Wins
ST. JOHN FISHER 83, Oneonta 72
The St. John Fisher College men's basketball team jumped out to a 16-point halftime and held on for an 83-72 victory against visiting Oneonta State in the Cardinals' season-opener on Tuesday. Fisher had four scorers in double-digits including a game-high 20 points from sophomore
Keegan Ryan on 8-for-10 from the floor.
Fisher jumped out to a 25-14 lead over the Red Dragons within the first 10 minutes. The Red Dragons cut the lead to 31-25, but the Cardinals finished strong with a 12-2 run over five minutes to take a 43-16 lead into the break. Fisher also took advantage of hitting the boards, out-rebounding Oneonta State 17-10 through the first half.
Ryan shot 6-for-7 in the half for 15 points, including Fisher's first six points of the season.
Fisher led by as many as 19 early in the second half at 50-31, but the Red Dragons mounted a comeback over span of nearly five minutes to cut the deficit to 52-44.
Optimystik Kinard helped swing the game back into the Cardinals favor scoring six straight points to push the lead to 59-47 at the 11:36 mark.
Fisher and Oneonta exchanged blows throughout the midway point of the second half, with Fisher leading 69-55 with 6:44 to play. The Cardinals went cold from the field, however, scoring just three points over a five-minute span to allow Oneonta cut the lead to 72-68 with 1:15 to play.
Fisher went 9-for-10 from the line over the final 1:15 to seal the victory.
Tyler Hart went 3-for-5 from beyond the arc en route to 17 points.
Adam Ambielli came off the bench to chip in 12 points. Kinard was an efficient 4-for-5 for 11 points.
Chaz Lott dished out a game-high seven assists.
STEVENS 72, FDU-Florham 58
The Stevens Institute of Technology men's basketball team jumped out to a 23-5 lead and shot well all night in a 72-58 road win at FDU-Florham Tuesday night.
With the win, the Ducks improve to 3-2 on the season and have now won their last two outings after a tough loss to Richard Stockton. FDU falls to 1-3 in the loss.
The Ducks shot a season-best 57.4 percent from the field, making 31-of-54 attempts and shooting 42.9 percent from three-point-land as well.
Similar to a 25-0 lead on Saturday against Baptist Bible, the Ducks used an excellent start to propel themselves to a win, scoring 23 of the game's first 28 points to open an 18-point lead 12:28 into the game.
The surge started with a jumper from senior forward
Patrick Sabatino on the team's second possession, and five points from sophomore forward
Otis Osman handed the Ducks a 7-2 edge 3:15 into the game. A three-pointer from sophomore guard
Patrick Barron put the Ducks on top 10-2, and a jumper from freshman guard
Austin Marchese at 12:03 gave the guests their first double-digit lead of the night (16-5). Another Marchese score followed by a dunk from junior forward
Alex Lorenz made the score 20-5, and a three-pointer from sophomore guard
Thomas Ahern pushed the lead to 18.
FDU was able to battle back, forcing the Ducks to put together a full 40 minutes of quality basketball. The Devils were able to get within 10 with 2:57 remaining in the opening period, and trimmed the lead to nine at intermission (33-24).
Stevens pushed its lead back to 13 thanks to six of the second half's first eight points, but could not pull away, and the Devils crawled back, making the score 41-34 with 15:25 left. An Osman jumper slowed the momentum, and after a couple stops, Lorenz upped the lead to 11 with 12:51 on the clock and the scoreboard showing 45-34.
The two teams went back and forth as the Ducks went back up 14, but would again eventually allow the hosts to get within seven points. Stevens turned a seven-point lead to 13 with six-straight points, getting a jumper from Barron with 5:49 remaining.
Stevens' lead would swell to as much as 15 and as little as 10 at 63-53 with 3:10 remaining, but the Ducks were able to bring home their first road win of the season with solid free-throw shooting.
Osman shot 7-for-8 from the field for the game, finishing with a team-high 16 points and three assists. Sabatino had 12 points and eight rebounds, while Gan scored 10, grabbed eight rebounds and tallied a pair of steals and assists. Freshman guard
Chris Cosgrove had six points and three assists and Marchese poured in eight off the bench. Lorenz was strong for the Ducks with eight points, five rebounds and two blocked shots as Stevens scored 44 points in the paint and was plus-nine on the glass (41-32).
The Stevens D held FDU to 29.5 percent shooting for the game (18-for-60) and 34.6 percent from three-point range (9-for-26).
UTICA 93, SUNY Poly 88 (OT)
The Utica College men's basketball team used an 11-5 run in the final 3:08 of overtime to earn a 93-88 victory over local rival SUNY Polytechnic at the Harold T. Clark Gymansium on Tuesday night. Utica senior
Conor Maisch netted seven of the Pioneers' 11 points in the final run to help UC secure the victory. Maisch finished the day with a team-best 28 points (5-of-8 from 3-point), while
Chris Jeffers added 19 points and 11 rebounds as UC improved to 2-2 on the season. The Pioneers also snapped a three game losing streak in the series against SUNY Poly.
The Wildcats (0-2) were led by 33 points, 11 assists and seven rebounds from senior guard Maverick Hodge while freshman shooter Ryan McCarthy, from nearby Camden, NY, added 21 points on 5-of-9 shooting from behind the arc. SUNYIT was 14-for-27 from 3-point range on the day.
Both teams struggled from the free-throw line as the Pioneers shot 31-for-52 from the charity stripe and SUNY Poly added an 8-for-17 effort. Five different players fouled out for the Wildcats.
SUNY led by as many as six points, 60-54, after Blake Haga knocked down a 3-pointer with 7:24 to go in regulation, but the Pioneers answered with a 17-11 run in the next 6:05 to knot the score at 71-71 with 1:19 left on the 2
nd half clock. UC senior guard
Aaron Nevins led the late push for UC with eight points in the stretch. Nevins finished the evening with 18 points and five rebounds, including a 12-for-15 effort from the free throw line.
On the Wildcats' next possession Thomas Lucas drilled a clutch 3-pointer from the corner to give the visitors a three point lead right back, 74-71, with 1:19 left in regulation.
Jeffers then made it a one point game after a lay-up with 19 seconds left and the Pioneers trailed 74-73. SUNY Poly's Lucas made one of two free throws on the Wildcats next possession, leaving the door open for the Pioneers, with the score set at 75-73.
Utica's
Aaron Nevins drove the lane on the Pioneers' final possession of regulation and was fouled, sending him to the line for two shots with six seconds to go. Nevins made both key free throws to send the contest into overtime.
The Pioneers were a perfect 4-for-4 from the floor and made 9-of-12 free throws in the five minute overtime to earn the five point victory. Maisch's nine points in OT led all scorers, while
Robert Tutein added four points in the extra frame. Tutein finished the day with 15 points and he was one of four Pioneers to score in double figures. Hodge netted seven points to pace the Wildcats in OT.
The Pioneers opened up a 19-11 lead in the first 9:24 of the game, behind six points each from Maisch and Jeffers. SUNYIT answered with a 14-4 run in a span of 6:44 to take a their first lead of the contest, 25-23, with 3:52 to go in the first half of play. UC closed out the first half on a 9-3 run to take a 32-28 lead into the locker room at the half.
The first 8:14 of the second half was a back and forth battle that featured five ties, until SUNY Poly made its run that led to the six point lead, 60-54, with 7:24 to go.
ALFRED 68, Penn College 61
The AU men's basketball team earned a hard-fought victory, 68-61, against the Penn Tech Wildcats despite trailing at half time.
The Saxons were able to mount a come from behind win over the Wildcats after trailing by three at the intermission. Senior
Jerry Kincel lead the Saxons with 15 points while
Tyler Seelman and
Dalton Walsh added 10 points apiece. Senior
Tim Pacheco spread the ball around notching seven assists, scoring eight points, and grabbing three steals.
The first half was a struggle for dominance with four lead changes as the Saxons boasted the largest lead margin at seven points with 6:47 to go. However, the Wildcats were able to erase the AU lead in the closing minutes and grabbed a three-point lead at the half.
The Saxons struggled in the first half only shooting 10 of 36 (27.8%) from the field, compared to Penn Tech's 12 of 29 (41.4%). The Wildcats also shot 5 of 13 (38.5%) from three.
However, the Saxons came out of the locker room ready for the second half. In the opening minute and half the Saxons erased the Wildcat lead and quickly took control with a three-pointer from Seelman. The Saxons never looked back from here and rode hot shooting down the stretch.
AU's largest lead was nine with 8:46 to go in the game, but the Penn Tech brought the game within one with 3:12 to go. AU would answer the Wildcat charge by shutting them out for the remainder of the game, and winning 68-61.
AU shot 16 of 30 (53.3%) in the second half, scoring 40 points and holding Penn Tech to only 30 points. The Saxons hit 5 of 13 (38.5%) three-pointers while struggling from the charity stripe (3 of 14, 21.4%).
Union 88, HARTWICK 70
Hilbert 79, ELMIRA 61
Malone 95, HOUGHTON 72