Men's Basketball | 2/18/2026 7:07:59 AM
ALBANY, NY – Postseason-bound Russell Sage College Men's Basketball wrapped up its regular season by defeating visiting Hartwick 89-71 in Tuesday night Empire 8 Conference action. The win, combined with results around the E8, secured the Gators (21-4/13-3 E8) the top seed in the upcoming E8 Conference Championship Tournament. After capturing its first E8 regular season title, RSC, which led by as many as 26, will host a Quarterfinal on Saturday at 2:00 p.m.
The Gators, which shot 49.3 percent from the field, had five players score in double figures of the historic victory.
Senior guard Brandon Harris (Elmsford, NY/Alexander Hamilton/Herkimer CC), among the E8 leaders in scoring average, steals, steals per-game, assists, and assists per-game, led all players with 19 points on 8-of-11 shooting
Junior center Khalel Noteman (Brooklyn, NY/Canarsie), who began the night among the Conference leaders in field goal percentage and rebounding, contributed a double-double of 15 points on 6-of-8 shooting and 11 rebounds.
Junior guard Pape Tunkara (Mount Vernon, NY/Iona Prep/Genesee CC), who commenced the week tied as the Conference leader in steals per-game, filled up the box score to the tune of 12 points, seven steals, seven rebounds, and five assists.
"I was incredibly proud of our togetherness tonight on both ends," said RSC Head Coach Brian Barnes. "I thought we played with great energy and really shared the ball on offense. It felt like we got back to our style of basketball as we went to the offensive glass hard and the press caused some turnovers that fueled our scoring runs. Defensively, our guys did an excellent job defending the three point line for the majority of the night and that was an important part of our scouting report. The crowd tonight was fantastic. We're going to need everyone to come back and also to bring a friend for Saturday's home playoff game. Everyone is 0-0 now so it's win or your season is over. We'll be ready for the challenge"
The Gators used a 27-11 first half run to go into the break ahead 46-30.
After Hartwick (10-15/4-12 E8) trimmed its deficit to nine, 49-40, with 17:14 left, RSC netted 14 of the next 16 points to regain breathing room.
Senior forward Xymier Thomas led the Hawks with 16 points.
Looking at the E8 Championship Tournament bracket, RSC will host St. John Fisher on Saturday afternoon.
Gator Bites: The 2025-2026 season marks the 17th for Barnes at the helm of Russell Sage College Men's Basketball…He achieved career win number 200 on November 15 at SUNY Cobleskill...RSC got off to its best five-game (5-0), ten-game (9-1), and 15-game (13-2) starts to a season in program history…The first loss was to top-ranked Trinity…The 2014-2015 edition of the Gators started their season at 6-1 and 7-3 on their way to a 23-5 overall record and capturing the Skyline Conference Tournament Championship, and accompanying NCAA Tournament berth...RSC started that historic season, and also began last year, with a 12-3 record...The Gators will be making their fifth appearance in Empire 8 Conference Championship Tournament…RSC began the week as the top offense in the Conference at 86.3 points per-game…The Gators are also the best rebounding squad in the E8, starting the week at 45.3 rebounds per-game…RSC is coming off a trip to the Quarterfinals of the Empire 8 Conference Championship Tournament…Seven players back from last year's squad…Junior guard Deavion Springsteen (Albany, NY/Albany), Noteman, and Harris headline the returners…Harris, voted third-team All-Conference, topped the Gators with 12.9 points per-game last season…The senior converted the game-winning layup with two seconds left in the January 6 overtime victory at Utica…He began the regular season finale second in the Conference in steals and steals per-game, third in assists and assists per-game and sat fifth with 17.6 points per-game…Junior guard Pape Tunkara (Mount Vernon, NY/Iona Prep/Genesee CC) commenced the week atop the E8 with 2.5 steals per-game…Noteman entered the night fourth in the Conference in field goal percentage and seventh in rebounding...Barnes added seven newcomers to the program…Sophomore guard Kyle Dhu (Ozone Park, NY/Brooklyn Law and Tech) was tabbed the E8 Player of the Week for the period ending Sunday, November 16…He averaged 25.5 points on 60.7 percent shooting in the 2-0 week…The sophomore made 61.5 percent of his three-point attempts and totaled 11 rebounds, five steals and four assists across the pair of victories…Harris was selected the E8 Player of the Week for the period ending Sunday, January 26…The guard averaged 26.0 points on 51.3 percent shooting across home wins vs. Nazareth (1/23) and Saint John Fisher (1/24)…He scored 35 points, the second most in a game by an RSC player, in the victory vs. Nazareth…On February 23, 2017 vs. Old Westbury, Rob Mills '17 went for 36 to help the Gators advance to the Skyline Conference Championship Tournament Finals.