Ithaca, St. John Fisher, Alfred, Hartwick Notch Men's Basketball Conference Wins
ST. JOHN FISHER 100, Utica 65
ROCHESTER, N.Y. -- The St. John Fisher College men's basketball team jumped out to a 61-31 halftime-lead and shot 71 percent from the floor, including 9-of-12 (75%) from 3-point range, as the Cardinals pushed their current win streak to 15 games with a 100-65 victory over visiting Utica College on Saturday.
With the win, Fisher improves to 17-2 overall and 10-0 in the Empire 8 Conference. It is the third-longest winning streak in the program's 52-year history. Utica is now 8-13, 4-8 on the year.
Fisher trailed 11-6 less than four minutes into the game, but the Cardinals went on 24-2 run over the next five minutes to open up the game.
Senior
Adam Ambielli sparked the pivotal streak, draining 3-pointers on three consecutive possessions in a span of 64 seconds.
Five different players made 3-pointers in the first half for Fisher, who scored a season-high 61 points in the opening period, including Ambielli (4-for-4) and
Tyler English (2-for-2).
Fisher shot 62 percent from the field and 60.9 percent (14-23) from 3-point land in the win.
Five players scored in double-figures for the Cardinals, with
Keegan Ryan dominating in the paint for 22 points and 10 rebounds. It is his eighth double-double this season.
Ambielli and Kinard each posted 12 points while
Charles McVay added 11, including 3-of-4 from behind the arc.
Chaz Lott dished out nine assists while
Garrett Sisson notched a season-high seven points.
ITHACA 87, Nazareth 73
ITHACA, N.Y. – The Ithaca College men's basketball team picked up its second-straight win Saturday afternoon, as the Bombers earned an 87-73 victory over the Nazareth Golden Flyers at Ben Light Gymnasium. The victory pushes the Bombers' overall record to 10-9, including a mark of 7-3 in the Empire 8. Nazareth drops to 6-11 overall and 2-6 in conference play.
The Bombers shot 40.3 percent in the victory, hitting 27-of-67 shots from the floor. The Bombers shot 11-for-32 (34.4 percent) from beyond the arc, and 22-of-26 (84.6 percent) from the charity stripe. Ithaca's bench outscored Nazareth's by a total of 18-0.
Junior
Sam Bevan paced the Bombers with 20 points, thanks in large part to 10-for-10 shooting from the free throw line. Freshman
Marc Chasin chipped in with 18 points, six rebounds and two assists in 32 minutes of work. Senior
Keefe Gitto scored 14 points, pairing with 11 rebounds for his second-straight double-double. Gitto also led the Bombers with four assists.
The Bombers and Golden Flyers matched pace in the first five minutes of play, as the game featured four ties in the opening moments. With the score tied at 11-11, including six-straight points from Gitto to start the game, the Bombers made their first push to swing the momentum in Ithaca's favor. A three-pointer from sophomore
Joe Masino sparked an impressive 21-3 run for the Ithaca over the next eight minutes. Another three-pointer from senior
Max Masucci capped the stretch, giving Ithaca the 32-15 lead with 7:22 to play in the half.
The Golden Flyers responded with strong play to close the opening frame. Nazareth outscored Ithaca by 10 points over the final seven minutes, sending the game to halftime with Ithaca holding a 38-31 advantage.
The Bombers dominated the beginning of the second half, outscoring the Golden Flyers 19-7 in the opening five minutes of the frame. The run increased Ithaca's lead to 19, putting the score at 57-38 with 14:45 to go in the contest. Nazareth chipped away at the Bomber lead, pulling to within single digits of Ithaca a number of times down the stretch.
Bevan scored 13 of his 20 points in the final five minutes of play, including a perfect 10-for-10 performance at the charity stripe and a clutch three pointer. With Ithaca holding a 79-71 lead with 1:19 to go, Bevan hit his final two free throws to regain the Bombers' double digit lead. Ithaca added to the advantage in the closing seconds, eventually coming away with the 87-73 victory.
ALFRED 78, Stevens 76
ALFRED, NY—Junior guard
Jerry Kincel (Moosic, PA/Riverside) came off the bench to lead Alfred University to a 78-76 victory over Stevens at the Terry S. Galanis Family Arena Saturday afternoon.
Four Saxons scored in double-digits in order to take a win away from the Stevens Ducks Saturday afternoon, marking the first time in school history AU has swept Stevens in regular season matchups. Kincel also hit milestone with a career-high 21 points for the Saxons shooting 9-of-14 (64.3%) from the field.
The first half looked meek for the Saxons when they fell behind by as many as 13 points to the Ducks and carried an 11 point deficit into the intermission. Senior guard
Tim Pacheco(Mt. Pocono, PA/Pocono Mountain East) led the Saxons in the first half with eight points, hitting 2-of-2 three pointers at clutch moments early on. Stevens' Patrick Barron paced the Ducks with 22 points in 16 minutes of play.
Stevens began the second by increasing the lead on AU to 15 points with 18:30 to go in the game. Finally the Saxons came to life and hit four deep balls to bring the lead down to five only three minutes later. Kincel notched nine points during this run, while sophomore
Tyler Seelman (Lorton, VA/Hayfield Secondary) added a fast-break three that acted as a dagger to the Ducks momentum.
With 8:37 left in play Pacheco drained a three-pointer to tie the game and senior forward
Dalton Walsh (Stockton, NY/Cassadega Valley) capitalized on the swing in emotions and scored a layup on the fast-break.
With the pressure on the Saxons maintained their composure and played tough defense to hold off the Ducks. With the win the Saxons move to 11-7 overall and 5-5 in the Empire 8. Stevens falls to 9-10 and 6-5 in the Empire 8, holding onto third place.
With his 21 points, Kincel added three rebounds, three assists, and two steals. Seelman notched 14 points while
Kevin McFall (Hatboro, PA/Upper Moreland) added 13 points and five assists. Pacheco ended his afternoon with 11 points, four assists, and three rebounds.
HARTWICK 73, Houghton 67
HOUGHTON, NY – Hartwick overcame a 15-point first-half deficit to claim a hard-fought 73-67 road victory over Houghton College in Empire 8 Conference men's basketball Saturday. The win for the Hawks is their third straight and they improve to 11-8 and 6-4 in the Empire 8.
Sophomore guard
Joey Lufkin (Argyle, NY/Argyle), who led Hartwick yesterday at Alfred with 23 points, was at it again against the Highlanders as he scored a team-high 25 points. He made five three-point shots and dished out five assists in the contest.
Matt Wilson (Shelton, CT/Franklin & Marshall College) registered a double-double with 12 points and a game-high 13 rebounds.
Justin Pratt (North Kingstown, RI/North Kingstown)nearly recorded a double-double with 17 points and nine boards.
Hartwick got the first basket of the game on a layup from Wilson and they led for only 53 seconds before the Highlanders went in front. They would hold onto the advantage for the next 30 minutes of action.
The Hawks trailed by three, 11-8, with 14:10 showing on the clock but the Highlanders would score 13 of the next 18 points to grab an 11-point, 24-13 lead with 10:53 left in the half. Houghton's lead hovered around ten points until a Pratt three trimmed it to seven. Eight straight Highlander points, however, made it a 38-23 advantage. The Hawks closed the half on a 9-2 spurt to inch closer at the break, 41-32.
In the second half, 'Wick chipped away at the Highlander advantage and got it down to three, 50-47, on a pair of Lufkin free throws. Houghton upped the lead to seven points with under 10 minutes to go, but three consecutive three-point baskets from the Hawks, two from Lufkin and one from
Jake Sinicki (Endicott, NY/Maine-Endwell), and the game was tied at 59-59 with 7:59 left. After a stop on the defensive end, Wilson put 'Wick in front for good with two free throws at 6:55.
A Lufkin three-pointer at 3:45 gave the Hawks their biggest lead of the day, 68-61. Seven of the next eight points went the way of the Highlanders and the margin was just two, 69-67, with 32 seconds left on the clock. Houghton couldn't get another point the rest of the way and Lufkin and Sinicki both hit two free throws each to put the Hawks in the win column.
Hartwick made 42.9% (24-for-56) of its shots in the game. The Hawks also hit 10 three-pointers and dominated the Highlanders in rebounds, 48-31.
Sinicki finished the game with nine points and eight rebounds for the Hawks.
Trevor Norton (Mullica Hill, NJ/Ursinus College) added six points and six rebounds and
Joe Krong (Amsterdam, NY/Franklin & Marshall College) grabbed eight boards.
The Highlanders received 25 points from Pellegrino. Jordan Scott added 17 points and a team-high six rebounds.