MBB: State University of New York Athletic Conference

[magicman]

More halftime scores:


Potsdam leads Skidmore 45-39 at the half.

Estramonte with 13 for the Bears. Hendricks, Adams, Williams and Peterson all with 6 apiece. Rob Duquett with only 1 point and Potsdam has the lead. Now that's surprising.



Brockport 33 Purchase 34

John Ivy with 10 and Brandon Caruthers with 8 to lead the Golden Eagles.




Hobart 45 Buffalo State 34

Justin Mitchell with 9 points and 8 rebounds. Lovell Smith with 6

[thebear]

Bears start out in a 2-11 hole in Saratoga vs. Skidmore, but finally regain their 3 pt touch led by soph Joe Estramonte [from next town East of Saratoga in Greenwich]/  lead 45-39 at the half on 7x11 from beyond the arc.

Estramonte has 13 at the half, and the bears pick up 17 bench points.

Bears only had 3 turnovers in 1H, and outrebounded the skidmarks 19-17. 

Hoping this trend will continue after intermission.

[magicman]

Wish I had a dollar for every time the Bears have had a lead at the half in the past 4 years. Wish I had another dollar for every time they were on the short end of the score at the end of the games that they had the lead at the half.

[thebear]

Me too, would have made a nice nest egg for retirement, however as usual they have dug and 18-8 hole starting the 2nd Half.

:-(

[magicman]

Buffalo State has come all the way back and tied Hobart at 68 with 6:42 left to play.

[magicman]

Hobart 85 Buffalo State 83 Final

Skidmore 87 Potsdam 74  Final    That would be another 2 bucks in my pocket. Bears led at the half, but not at the end.

Brockport 74 Purchase 74     End of regulation

[magicman]

Brockport and Purchase headed to a 2nd overtime tied at 80.

[magicman]

Purchase 98 Brockport 90 Final in double overtime.

Brockport had 2 chances to win this game in regulation. The Golden Eagles had the ball after a made free throw by Purchase to tie the game at 74 with 54 seconds left. Brockport came down and Bobby Bell took a 3 point attempt, missed and got the offensive rebound. They looked for a shot and ended up calling a time out with 9 ticks left. John Ivy let fly with a jumper at the buzzer that was no good and the game continued. Up by 4 pts at 78-74, with 2:21 left in OT the Eagles allowed the Panthers to score 6 unanswered points to take an 80-78 edge with 1:15 left. Port tied it up with 50 seconds to go an a Matt Lee layup and after a Purchase miss, Brockport again had a chance to end the game but once more came up empty when Clifton Lyerly missed a jumper at the buzzer. Brockport scored first on 2 free throws in the 2nd extra session but it was all Panthers after that. Tied at 84, Purchase opened up a 91-86 lead with 2:03 left. After a Brockport miss on their next possession the Eagles were forced to foul and the Panthers hit their free throws to close this one out.

John Ivy with 29 and Brandon Caruthers with 23 led the Golden Eagles.

Tough loss for Brockport but they gave this Purchase team one too many chances and the Panthers made them pay. Coach Dunne is already wishing he had this one back for a do over on those last few possessions in regulation and the 1st OT.

Brockport is now 1-1 and will next be in action on 12-4 when the Wendy's Tournament gets under way in the Rochester area.   

[magicman]

Mount St. Mary 71  New Paltz 57   Final

Hawks were down in this game right from the opening bell. The lead hit double digits 6 minutes in at 17-6 and with 6:10 left in the period the Knights had extended the margin to 15 pts at 25-10. The teams headed into the locker rooms with the Mount on top 33-20.

Hawks came out and quickly got the deficit back to single digits but couldn't sustain the momentum and slowly but surely the Knights built the lead back up to 15, then 18 and ultimately 20 points. For most of the 2nd period the lead fluctuated between 13 and 18 points. Hawks did make a mini run to lower it to 10 points with 50 seconds to go but this game was clearly over 3 minutes into the 2nd period.

Hawks Nick Taldi was the only player in double figures for his team with 12 points. Taylor Sowah led the team with 8 rebounds and 8 points. Andrew Seniuk and Kewan Beebe both had 9 points.

Hawks after a nice west coast trip have now dropped three in a row to fall under .500. They will next  face Eastern Connecticut, on the road, December 3rd. That one will be another tough outing for New Paltz as they will struggle to put one in the win column against the Warriors.

I had the Hawks losing this game 77-71 but they weren't able to keep this one that close. Hawks haven't generated much offense since their return from the left coast, averaging under 60 ppg.

[magicman]

Hobart 85 Buffalo State 83 Final

Another heartbreaker for the Bengals as they claw their way back into this game from a large 2nd half deficit, only to come up on the short end. Seems like I just saw that Bengal movie on Friday night against Ohio Northern. I hate reruns, especially when the bad guys win.

Hobart had the better of play throughout the 1st period as they opened up a 12-4 lead 5 minutes into the game. Bengals would close it to a single possession but the Statesmen kept the Bengals at bay and maintained a 5 to 9 point edge until 2 free throws by Hobart with 3 seconds left in the half gave them a double digit 46-35 advantage at the break.

The Statesmen opened the  2nd half  with 3 layups to offset a triple by Rod Epps and the lead swelled to 14 points with 2 minutes gone by in the period. Hobart was still leading by 11 points at 61-50 with 10:51 remaining, when the Bengals finally made their move. Led by 7 points from Justin Mitchell and 6 points from Brad Doyley, Buffalo State would outscore Hobart by an 18 to 7 margin over the next 4 minutes until a layup by Lovell Smith made the score 68-68 with 6:42 to play. Eight lead changes and 2 ties would occur during  the remainder of the contest. The Statesmen were down 79-78 with just under 3 minutes to go when Hobart's preseason All American, Richie Bonney, would score 5 unanswered points to give his team a lead they wouldn't surrender. Down 84-79 with 1:27 left the Bengals made one last push as first Smith and then Mitchell scored to bring Buff State within a single point. Mitchell had a chance to tie the game as he was fouled on his jumper, with just under a minute remaining, but missed the free throw. Bonney grabbed the rebound and shortly thereafter the Bengals fouled Trey Blanding with 35 seconds left. He missed the first, made the 2nd and the Bengals had one final chance to tie or win the game. They had a decent look but missed the attempt for the game winner from downtown and Hobart left the Sports Arena with the W.

Richie Bonney led the Statesmen with a double double of 21 points and 12 rebounds. Trey Blanding had 22 pts along with 7 assists while Joe Gibbons was next with 16 points. Connor Rehbaum had a solid game with 12 points, 6 rebounds, 3 assists, 2 steals and a block. Zach Grattan came off the bench adding 12 rebounds and 8 points.

Buffalo State got a huge game from Justin Mitchell as the senior forward shared scoring honors with 22 points and led everyone with 15 rebounds. He also added 4 assists, 3 blocks, and a steal. Lovell Smith came off the bench and had 14 points. Chris Thompson, making his 1st appearance since the season opener, also came off the bench and just missed a double double with 13 points and 9 rebounds. He added 3 blocks and a steal in only 18 minutes on the floor. He fouled out with almost 4 minutes left to play which may have proved  costly to the Bengals down the stretch. Rod Epps had 12 points and Brad Doyley added 10.

Bengals had 8 more field goals than Hobart  but the Statesmen had 2 more 3 pointers and made 16 more free throws. That last statistic was the telling one and ultimately proved to be a difference maker. The Bengals also only made 12 of their 23 attempts from the stripe. If they shoot 65% instead of 52% from the line  they win this game. 

Buffalo State falls to 2-3 and is off until 12-6 when they open conference play against Oneonta.           

[magicman]

Fredonia avoids the upset as they come from behind to defeat D'Youville   75-74.

[magicman]

Happy Thanksgiving to everyone who stops by our SUNYAC board.

Time to do an update on the YAC's out of conference activity.

Our overall record has taking a beating as we've finished  the 2nd week of the season. We had a 14-7 record after the games of 11-21 were completed for an outstanding .666 winning percentage. Our conference ranking in the Massey Ratings had risen from #15 up to the 10th spot, our highest ranking in recent memory.  If we had continued on that pace we'd still be a top 10 ranked conference right now. Unfortunately some tight games didn't go our way and other games, that I think we should have won, proved to be a letdown. Since Nov. 22nd the conference has collectively posted a 5-15 won-lost mark for a .333 winning percentage. This is just about the exact opposite of our first 7 day record. Overall we now stand at 19-17 heading into the Thanksgiving break and are rated as the 14th strongest conference in D3 out of 45 . With 36 out of 70 non-conference games already in the books, we're looking at approximately 34 remaining OOC games left to play (I'm assuming all 10 YAC teams are playing 7 OOC games each (10x7=70)). It's hard  trying to project how we might do over those remaining games because a large part of  these contests take place in holiday tournaments. The 2nd game's opponent won't be known until the first round games are over. Cortland is playing 2 games in Washington D.C. over the holidays and those opponents have yet to be posted to their schedule. Geneseo and Brockport are each playing 3 games in the Wendy's Tournament in the Rochester area. They haven't announced the first round matchups for that tournament yet either. However, based on the information that I do have, I've made some projections that I believe are within reason. I think we can go 19-15 the rest of the way which would give us an overall 38-32 won-loss record for the non-conference portion of our schedule. That would put us around a .543 winning percentage and keep us in the top third of the conference rankings. With a bit of luck, and some solid outings we could pick up 3 to 5 wins above my estimates. It will depend on who Cortland might face in D.C., what the opening matchups will be in the Wendy's tournament for Port and Geneseo, as well as the ability of Plattsburgh and Buffalo State to win some of those games against the so called power conferences. I also think that Oneonta, Potsdam Fredonia  and New Paltz will be a combined 3-8 in their remaining nine contests. Anything better than that would be a bonus.

After looking at the non-conference schedules of all the teams in the SUNYAC I thought it was time to announce who had the strongest and most challenging schedules in the league. Last year the top team was Plattsburgh State followed by Buffalo State. Those 2 teams once again occupy the top 2 positions according to my rankings but the Bengals have supplanted the Cardinals in the #1 spot.

Taking on a pair of teams from the CCIW conference including Final Four participant North Central and Carthage College, who last night defeated the #4 ranked Washington University Bears 82-80 will generally boost your SOS. Buffalo State also scheduled two strong teams from the Ohio Athletic Conference, John Carroll, who looks like the League Champion, and Ohio Northern. They had East Region powers Hobart, St. John Fisher, and Medaille to round out a schedule that left them so stuffed, they had no room for cupcakes. This slate of non-conference teams is a huge upgrade over the schedule they played just several years ago, when they defeated 4 OOC teams by margins that reached as high as 48 points. Now they were cupcakes.

Plattsburgh, once again, faces a challenging group of non-conference opponents. Coach Curle has never been shy about playing strong teams, more often than not on their home court, since no one wants to travel way up North to play the Cardinals at home. This year the Cards were in New Jersey to take on perennial NJAC power Richard Stockton, and MASCAC title contender Bridgewater State. They will face teams from the LEC, the CCIW and WIAC, the latter pair  in a holiday tournament in Florida, before they travel to Middlebury to face the nationally ranked Panthers in early January. The weakest team on their OOC schedule might be North Country rival St. Lawrence who is always in the hunt for the Liberty League title. I think the Saints will probably finish with 14 or 15 wins and be in the LL playoffs once again. I don't think any of the teams Plattsburgh has scheduled outside of the YAC will end up with a losing record. Not many programs will be able to say that. Curle's approach has always been to prepare his team, first and foremost, for conference play. A strong non-conference slate is one of the best ways to do that.

Here are the rankings as I see them. I've based my decisions on:
1. The success that a team's opponents had last year.

2. The amount of talent a team is returning. (A great team last year may be in a full blown rebuilding mode this year. North Central, for instance, won't be a Final Four participant again this year and probably won't even win their conference, but they are a very good team with a lot of returning players.)

3. The limited amount of information that is available for the team's opponents based on this year's results. Won-lost records, offensive and defensive production plus stats that give added insight about a teams' capabilities.

4. The reputation and success of the conference the opponents come from.

You may not agree with my rankings. No problem. It's just one man's opinion,  so it doesn't mean I'm right. Comments are always welcome.

1     Buffalo State
2     Plattsburgh
3     New Paltz
4     Brockport
5     Oneonta
6     Geneseo
7     Potsdam
8     Cortland
9     Oswego
10   Fredonia               


 
     

[dcahill44]

Personally I think Oswego is a Top 4 team in the SUNYAC... Plattsburgh, Brockport, Geneseo, Buffalo State, Oneonta I think are the 6 that get in the tournament.
1. Plattsburgh
2. Brockport
3. Buffalo State
4. Oswego
5. Geneseo
6. Oneonta
7. New Paltz
8. Cortland
9.Fredonia
10. Potsdam

[magicman]

Personally I think Oswego is a Top 4 team in the SUNYAC... Plattsburgh, Brockport, Geneseo, Buffalo State, Oneonta I think are the 6 that get in the tournament.
1. Plattsburgh
2. Brockport
3. Buffalo State
4. Oswego
5. Geneseo
6. Oneonta
7. New Paltz
8. Cortland
9.Fredonia
10. Potsdam

dcahill,

I think you missed reading this part of my post:

After looking at the non-conference schedules of all the teams in the SUNYAC I thought it was time to announce who had the strongest and most challenging schedules in the league. Last year the top team was Plattsburgh State followed by Buffalo State. Those 2 teams once again occupy the top 2 positions according to my rankings but the Bengals have supplanted the Cardinals in the #1 spot.


You're missing the point of what I posted. The rankings that I did aren't how I think the teams will finish. They are how I ranked the difficulty of their non-conference schedule. 

I ranked how I thought the teams would finish several weeks ago on November 14th, in this post.

Think the SUNYAC race may look something like this at year's end. Lots of new faces this year, with a number of transfers along with plenty of new recruits, anything can and probably will happen. It's always tough to win on the road in the YAC so as usual, the teams that protect their home court will be the ones that make the playoffs. Here's my take. I think the top 4 teams are solid teams with a lot of talent and any one of them could claim the SUNYAC crown. Also think Potsdam, Cortland and Oswego are interchangeable with some tough battles being waged there for the final playoff spot.                                     


1. Plattsburgh State
2. Buffalo State
3. Brockport State
4. Geneseo State
5. Potsdam State
6. Cortland State
7. Oswego State
8. Oneonta State
9. New Paltz State
10. Fredonia State
   

[magicman]

SUNYAC Player of the Week for Week#2

Kyle Covley, Oswego
Fairport / Penfield


Covley helped the Lakers to a perfect 3-0 record on the week with wins over Ithaca, St. Lawrence and Hartwick. He averaged 17.7 points per game and shot 58.3 percent from three-point range. In the Lakers overtime win against St. Lawrence Covley scored 15 points including a clutch three-pointer with :41 seconds in OT as the shot clock expired putting the game away for the Oswego.