Men's Basketball | 2/21/2026 9:15:54 PM
Three of the top four seeds suffered upsets to lower seeds, as No. 3 SUNY Geneseo, No. 5 SUNY Brockport, No. 7 Keuka University and No. 8 St. John Fisher University advanced to the 2026 Empire 8 Men’s Basketball Championship Tournament Semifinal round after quarterfinal action on Saturday, Feb. 21.
Geneseo was the lone higher seed to survive, rallying late to defeat No. 6 Utica University, 68-62. In a day full of upsets, St. John Fisher hung on for a 77-71 win at No. 1 Russell Sage College, while Keuka outlasted No. 2 seed Nazareth University, 96-89 in overtime and Brockport used a second half surge to defeat No. 4 SUNY Poly, 84-75
No. 3 Geneseo will host No. 7 Keuka in one semifinal, while No. 5 Brockport hosts No. 8 St. John Fisher in the other semifinal, with both games set to start at 6 p.m. Earlier this season, Geneseo defeated Keuka in the E8 opener for both teams, 64-58 at home on Dec. 6, while Brockport and St. John Fisher split a pair of regular season contests with each team winning on the road. St. John Fisher secured a 77-63 win on Jan. 9, while Brockport returned the favor with a 94-85 win on Feb. 7.
The two semifinal winners will meet on Saturday, Feb. 28 at the highest remaining seed in the E8 Championship. The Empire 8 Champion will earn an automatic berth into the 2026 NCAA Division III Men's Basketball Championship Tournament.
NO. 8 ST. JOHN FISHER 77, NO. 1 RUSSELL SAGE 71
It's not March yet, but the St. John Fisher men's basketball team provided some Madness a little early on Saturday afternoon, making an already wide-open Empire Conference Tournament feel more so.
With their 77-72 victory over Russell Sage at the Kahl Campus Center, the Cardinals became the first No. 8 seed to beat a No. 1 seed in Empire 8 history. Not only in men's basketball, but in any of the conference's championship tournaments. The Cardinals never trailed in the contest and improved to 13-13 on the season. Russell Sage fell to 21-5 on the season.
Freshman guard
Mekhi Gidney, who shot 5-of-14 overall (1-of-4 from three) and 7-of-8 from the free-throw line, led the Cardinals on Saturday with 18 points and nine rebounds. Sophomore guard
Jack Janes and junior guard
Giovanni Schillaci made huge contributions off the bench with 17 and 15 points, respectively, while sophomore forward/center
Maximus Michalski also scored in double figures. He had 15 points on 7-of-12 shooting to go with six rebounds, two blocked shots and a steal. Senior guard
Max Schneider dished out a game-high six assists and chipped in five points.
Pape Tunkara (18 points) and Jeremy Rosario (17 points) paced the Gators offensively. Sage had two other players score in double figures, including Khalel Noteman, who posted a double-double with 10 points and 10 rebounds.
The Gators' 72 points marked their second-fewest in a game this season. They entered the postseason as the top-scoring team in the Empire 8 at 86.4 points per game and had scored 80 or more points in 19 consecutive contests, a streak that began on Nov. 30.
NO. 7 KEUKA 96, NO. 2 NAZARETH 89 (OT)
Keuka College earned its first Empire 8 postseason victory in men’s basketball, defeating No. 2 seeded Nazareth University in overtime by a score of 96-89 from Kidera Gymnasium on Saturday afternoon. Keuka improved to 13-13 with the win, while Nazareth fell to 18-7.
Nazareth battled Keuka through eight first-half lead changes, taking a 17-16 edge on a midrange jumper by
Solomon McFarlane at 11:11 before trading runs the rest of the half.
After falling behind by as many as 11 late in the first half, Nazareth closed on an 8-0 burst, highlighted by two free throws and a buzzer-beating 3-point half-court heave from McFarlane, trimming the deficit to 43-40 at the break.
In the second half, Nazareth answered an early seven-point hole with timely perimeter shooting, as Luke Insley drilled a 3 to tie it 52-52 and Jaylen Savage converted a steal into a fast-break layup to pull the Golden Flyers within one at 55-54.
The Golden Flyers evened the score in the final minute of regulation when Savage split a pair at the line to make it 73-73 with 46 seconds left. Nazareth forced a miss in the closing seconds to send the game to overtime.
In OT, Keuka struck first and steadily built separation at the free-throw line, pushing the margin to as many as 10 with 23 seconds left. Nazareth countered with 3-pointers from Tyler Putney and Insley to stay within reach, but Keuka answered each time with free throws to maintain a two-possession cushion.
McFarlane added a late jumper in overtime, but Nazareth could not overcome Keuka's 23-point extra session, falling 96-89 after the visitors sealed the game at the stripe in the final seconds.
Lamar Lovelace led all scorers for Keuka with 32 points to go along with 11 rebounds and five assists. Kaleb Nutifafa added 14 points and nine boards, while Akinlana Popoola had 13 points.
Jaylen Savage matched his season-high with 27 points over the Wolves, his seventh game this season with 20 or more points. He contributed five rebounds, two assists, one block and one steal in his final collegiate game.
Luke Insley recorded 20 points in the loss, shooting 7 of 15 from the field and 2 for 2 from beyond the arc. The graduate student added a team-high nine assists with one rebound and one steal.
NO. 3 SUNY GENESEO 68, NO. 6 UTICA 62
SUNY Geneseo knocked off the two-time Empire 8 defending champions Utica on Saturday afternoon, 68-62. Backed by a raucous home crowd and student section, the Knights earned the quarterfinal win in Schrader Gym for the program's first playoff victory since the 2013-14 season.
The Knights improved to 16-10 on the season, while Utica had its season come to an end with a 17-9 mark.
The Knights got off to a slow start, quickly falling behind 12-0 to the Pioneers. Utica opened the game 6-6 from the field, while forcing five turnovers on the Knights.
Justin Yearwood and
Jackson Casey eventually settled the Knights offense into the game, knocking down a pair of three's.
Down by 10 later in the half at 22-12, the Knights went on an 8-2 run powered by shots from deep by
Robert Pericolosi and
Colin Gentile. Utica was able to regain control before halftime however, taking a 10-point lead into the locker rooms.
Geneseo opened the second half on an 11-2 run, backed by three's from Pericolosi and
Trevor Hofer. As the Knights defense continued to stifle Utica in the second half, Hofer and Gentile knocked down back-to-back three's to mark the first lead of the game at 43-40 with 13:08 left to play.
James Burton knocked down a big three for the Knights to push the lead to 54-50, but consecutive shots from Daiyon Thompson and Utica put the visitors back ahead by two points. Down by four with 3:30 left, Pericolosi scored seven unanswered points for Geneseo to extend the lead to 64-61 with 1:30 to play.
The Knights dominant defensive second half continued down the stretch, only allowing one point in the final 3:30 of action to secure the playoff victory, 68-62.
Pericolosi put up a dominant performance for Geneseo, leading the team in scoring and rebounding with 18 and nine. Pericolosi's defense and rebounding played a key role in the Knights second half defensive turnaround, limiting Utica to just eight points in the paint in the second half, compared to 32 from the first half.
Gentile and
Josh Garelle each chipped in 11 points, while tallying eight and seven rebounds, respectively.
Jordan Cain and Thompson led Utica with 16 points apiece. Keyaton Parks added 14 points and 10 boards, while Liam Teague had 12 points.
NO. 5 SUNY BROCKPORT 84, NO. 4 SUNY POLY 75
SUNY Brockport continued its tremendous late-season surge, using a 13-0 spurt early in the second half to break a 41-41 tie en route to an 84-75 win over SUNY Poly. The Golden Eagles have now won eight straight games to improve to 15-11 on the season. Poly finishes its season with an 18-8 mark.
Ajani Flemming led the Golden Eagles with 19 points, including 5-of-8 shooting from 3-point range. Jacob Oka had 18 points on 8-of-11 shooting from the field and nine boards, while Pharell Aybar added 14 points, five boards and five assists. Cameron Pownall was a perfect 6-of-6 from the floor, scoring 14 points in just 18 minutes of play.
SUNY Poly came out firing from beyond the arc in the opening minutes.
Brian Bonin opened the scoring with a jumper before
William Scanlon and
Kamryn Comstock connected on early three-pointers to give the Wildcats an 11–5 advantage. Bonin was active on both ends, controlling the glass and facilitating, while Comstock knocked down multiple threes to help SUNY Poly build momentum.
Brockport answered behind strong interior play from Pharell Aybar and Cameron Pownall. The Golden Eagles chipped away at the deficit with second-chance opportunities and paint scoring, eventually tying the game at 39–39 late in the half after an Omar White fastbreak dunk. SUNY Poly received a late bucket from Bonin, but the teams entered the break deadlocked after an up-and-down opening 20 minutes.
Out of halftime, Brockport seized control. Pownall and Jacob Oka established a presence in the paint, combining for several early baskets to spark a 15–2 run. Ajani Flemming added a three-pointer during the stretch, pushing the Golden Eagles' lead to double digits.
SUNY Poly battled back midway through the second half.
Anthony Rose ignited the Wildcats with a pair of fastbreak dunks, while Comstock converted free throws and Bonin came up with key steals to trim the margin to 62–52 with just under 10 minutes to play.
However, each SUNY Poly push was met with a response. Oka scored repeatedly inside, finishing through contact and converting at the line, while Flemming drilled another three to keep Brockport in front. The Golden Eagles extended their lead to as many as 18 before the Wildcats mounted one final charge.
Rose continued to attack the rim in the closing minutes, scoring on consecutive drives and completing a three-point play to cut the deficit to single digits. Bonin added a late three-pointer with under a minute to go, but Brockport sealed the game at the free-throw line to secure the 84–75 victory.
2025-26 Empire 8 Men's Basketball Championship Schedule
Saturday, February 21 – First Round (at Higher Seed)
No. 8 St. John Fisher defeated No. 1 Russell Sage, 77-72 – BOX SCORE
No. 7 Keuka defeated No. 2 Nazareth, 96-89 (OT) – BOX SCORE
No. 3 SUNY Geneseo defeated No. 6 Utica, 68-62 – BOX SCORE
No. 5 SUNY Brockport defeated No. 4 SUNY Poly, 84-75 – BOX SCORE
Wednesday, February 25 – Semifinals (at Higher Seed)
No 8 St. John Fisher at No. 5 SUNY Brockport – 6 p.m. – VIDEO/LIVE STATS
No. 7 Keuka at No. 3 SUNY Geneseo – 6 p.m. – VIDEO/LIVE STATS
Saturday, February 28 - Championship Final (at Highest Remaining Seed)
Winner of Semifinal No. 1 vs. Winner of Semifinal No. 2 - TBA – VIDEO/LIVE STATS
Admission
$10.00 - Adults
$2.00 - Students and seniors with ID
Free - Children under 12