MBB: State University of New York Athletic Conference

[jdex]

Cortland takes third place in F&M Tourney by beating Gwynedd-Mercy, Pa. 85-67. Red Dragons shoot to 38-27 edge at break. F. Ranieri 23 pts (9x14fg, 2x2 3s), 11 rebs, 4 assts; D. Maggiacomo (5x10 3s) 17 pts, 3 assts in 18'; R. Headley (6x11fg) 15 pts, 6 rebs; S. Taggart (7x10 fg) 15 pts, 6 rebs in 17'. Corts 32x67fg, 10x23 3s, just 5 TOvers

Plattsburgh 83, W. New England 64 in Pburgh tourney final. Cards 34-33 half leaders

Oswego 77, Skidmore 55 in Oswego final. Lakers 41-28 up at half

[unbearable]

Hello jdex, Bear, and others.  Hope all is well with you.

An interesting start to the year.

SUNYAC 2-1 vs. E8, 2-0 vs. LL.

SUNYAC 16-7 overall.

Good win for Potsdam over Wilkes, who was picked to win the MAC Freedom league (Scranton, King's, etc.)  I think those who picked the Bears to finish ninth in the league might be a little surprised come March. Good early test next Tuesday when Plattsburgh visits Potsdam. Can Gibbs-Smith carry the Cards, who lost Carter, Arterberry, Jelani Simmons, and Smith from last year? We'll see.

Anyone who saw Potsdam destroy St. John Fisher by 24 in the Sweet 16 last year should not be surprised that Fisher lost to Baldwin Wallace from the OAC in their opener.  Their preseason #7 ranking was laughable, and the person who voted them #1 in the country in the preseason poll ought to have his/her head examined.  Talk about no sense of perspective.  No disrespect on last year's 28-0 start, which is a great accomplishment, but beating up on Hartwick, Elmira, Nazareth, et al.  doesn't exactly mean you can hang with tougher Divison III teams.

Most unbelievable stat of the weekend, Wilkes up 27-0 and then 45-1 to start consolation game vs. Paul Smith's. 

[Caz Bombers]

Most unbelievable stat of the weekend, Wilkes up 27-0 and then 45-1 to start consolation game vs. Paul Smith's. 

Daaaaaammmmnnnn.  What the heck is Paul Smith's anyway (besides a College of Forestry)? I know they're not D3, I wouldn't guess they're D2 if they got beat down like that.

Heyyyy, my first post of Year 2 on d3hoops.com....and it's on the SUNYAC board asking about Paul Smith.

So who's the team to beat this year? I hear Brockport is back to being strong, but Potsdam should have something to say about that. Oswego? Cortland?

[jdex]

Hey, Caz, you might want to try some previous pages on SUNYAC board.

Paul Smith's a north country institution. Don't know its affiliation; not NCAA, we believe. Wilkes 95, PS 39 consi at Pdam

On Sunday:
Geneseo saw 28-27 halftime edge vanish in 68-60 slip to MIT in Emmanuel Tourney (Boston) final. Knights in 44-38 lead midway through final half, then slipped. S. McDonnell (8x15fg) 21 pts, T. Kitson 12 pts., both all tourney. S. Sciera 13 pts, 8 rebs. Gens 25x53fg but just 2x15 3s while MIT 7x18 there (23x50fg)

Buffalo St. in third game in three days lost at D1 UBuffalo 96-61; outboarded 49-29 and shoots 24x60fg to Bulls 34x69. UB 36-16 inside point edge. G. Jones (6x11fg) 16 pts; J. Williams 5 blks, 11 pts, 5 rebs

On Saturday, Cortland's F. Ranieri all tourney at F&M meet where Trinity, Ct. won title, 84-75, in OT

Oneonta's Saturday loss to host Muhlenberg had Dragons within 64-62 at 1:18; was 32-31 game at half. OStater
's Heslin (7x14fg) 17 pts; Murphy (6x9 fg) 12 pts, 9 rebs; Coffee (6x12fg) 15 pts 

[gatoradio]

According to their website, Paul Smiths College is a member of the United States Collegiate Athletic Association (USCAA) which is comprised of small colleges throughout the United States with an enrollment less than 1500.  They are a member of the Northern Independence Conference (NIC) which is composed primarily of small institutions in New York and New England.

I was unable to locate a central web page for the NIC  conference, but according to Paul Smiths' season schedule, it would appear that some other schools in the conference are:  Clinton CC, Albany Pharmacy, Vermont Tech, New Hampshire Tech, Lyndon State, Green Mountain, Word of Life, and North Country CC.

[thebear]

Paul Smiths is a former two year school that has moved to four year, but with a decent number of one year certificate and two year associates programs still extant.  They have about 800 students and are located 20 miles Northwest of Lake Placid.

They have been playing more four year schools lately, and usually are a W for the nearby D-III Schools, Clarkson, Potsdam, SUNYIT and Plattsburgh usually have them on the schedule or in a tournament.

Wilkes had a bone in their teeth after the loss to Potsdam, and they just pounded Paul Smiths, who gave away about 5 inches per man.

Potsdam-Clarkson game was a struggle for the first half, then Dobbs made a couple of half-time adjustments, and the Bears ripped off 8 unanswered pts to start the second half.  Built the lead to 21 before Dobbs cleared the bench with about 3:00 to play.  Clarkson left regulars in and came back to a final margin of 14.  Dobbs played 14 of 15 on his roster and the 9 new guys played a total of 82 minutes, so they are getting baptized into college ball right out of the gate,

Much taller Clarkson had a big rebounding edge, but shot poorly both inside and outside.

Plattsburgh has reloaded, couple of athletic transfers, Gibbs-Smith is the go to guy, but he seems to have a decent supporting cast.  Despite their huge losses from last season, they will be competitive, they have good size, and athleticism.  Will be tough at their place for sure, particularly for those teams that have to play Potsdam on Friday and the Cards on Saturday.

Cards travel to Jerry Welsh Gym on 11/29 for a big early season game that should help sort out the haves and have-nots in the SUNYAC. 

Happy Turkey Day everyone.

[jdex]

Oneonta takes 78-69 tumble in home opener vs. Utica College (3-0). Dragons down 34-31 in opening 20' despite B. Heslin 15 pts. OState quickly digs bigger hole. Heslin finishes with 20 pts. (7x11fg, 2x4 3s),  11 rebs. E. Bratt 12 pts., J. Murphy 12 pts, M. Reardon 11 pts, 6 assts. Ddragons 26x65fg, 6x21 3s. UC 24x50fg paced by J. Bryant 24 pts, 14 rebs. OState 1-2

[bports]

Bport opens there season on the road tonight at 1-1 St Lawrence. Its a nice little advantage for St Lawrence to have already played 2 games, and playing the port with out rother in the post. I would love to go to the game but Bport to Canton is a serious hike.  I expect big games out of belluci, cheeves,maldonado, and harris.

[jdex]

While Bports take to the road this evening vs. St. Lawrence, Cortland (1-1) has Elmira at home, New Paltz greets Mt. St. Mary's, and Fredonia treks to D'Youville

[bports]

Just listened to the Bport pregame show and i have some bad news for Bport fans. Not only is rother not eligeable until 2nd semester but harris and williams are off the team. I have no idea if this is a one game suspension, a 1 semester suspension or if they are off the team for good. To sum this up Bport is without 3 starters, and is only dressing 10 players.

[jdex]

Cortland (2-1) dispatches Elmira 84-52 at CState. Sees 37-27 halftime lead dwindle to 7 before pulling away. Dragons 50% from field, 56% 2nd half. F. Ranieri 16 pts, 9 rebs, 6 assts; D. Maggiacomo 14 pts (3x4 3s), R. Headley 11 pts, 7 rebs; S. Skrelja 11 pts, 7 rebs; D. Jutton 11 pts. (3x3 3s)

Brockport opens campaign with rallying 77-74 win at St. Lawrence. D. Maldonado 10 foot bucket at 3:05 snaps 66-66 tie and Bports never headed.  Larries within 74-72 when fts extend Bport edge. SL final bid off rim. Hosts up early 23-11; Eagles close to 35-31 at half. Bport first lead of final half at 61-60, and J. Cheves trey makes it 64-60. Cheves 6 3s in 25 pt. game (16 in 2nd half), 6 rebs. B. Bellucci 15 pts, 7 rebs. Maldonado 11 pts. Bkport 25x69 fg (9x18 3s); SL 33-31 reb edge but Saints with 32 TOvers (Bport 16)

[jdex]

And,
New Paltz (2-1) def. Mt. St. Mary 63-57 in first round of Hudson Valley Shootout. At home, NP overcame 30-29 intermission deficit. M. Irwin trey put NP up with 12:52 left. Only 1 ahead at 3:52, Hawks finished well. J. Hauser 20 pts, 7 reb; B. Kaible 10 pts, 8 rebs. NP vs. Vassar 11/30 in final

Fredonia (2-1) takes D'Youville 61-55 in OT in Buffalo. C. Donahue 3-pter starts off extra frame. T. Alassari (15 pts, 9 rebs, 3 stls) hits 2ft with :12 left in second half. T. Anderson 19 pts, 6 assts, K. Gordon 8 rebs

[thebear]

Preview of SUNYAC openers Tuesday night. Pairings match top teams and traditional rivals.  Conference co-favorite Oswego gets the bye on Tuesday.

Cortland  at Brockport   
Two of top three preseason picks in conference tipoff.  D-I transfer Cheves a scoring machine for the Eagles, but Dragons have 10 of top 12 back from their second place team, plus a top inside player in Scott Taggart who held his own against 1st team preseason AA Tyler Rhoten of Trinity in season opener, in a game decided in closing seconds.

Fredonia  at Buffalo State   
Fredonia has everyone back, but Buffalo State has a new coach, top talent returning, and a new force in the middle in 6'8 James Williams.

SUNYIT  at Geneseo   
Geneseo made a run at the end of the season, but lost conference POY in Zera.  Kitson was conference ROY and Steve McDonnell, top perimeter player return.  IT lost two best players, but has veteran coach Tom Murphy at the helm, and several top JUCO's

Oneonta  at New Paltz   
Coach Vince Medici turned program around in one year, and has core returning including excellent size on the front line.  NP lost top two scorers, but will be more team oriented and has a top player in John Hauser.  Will Oneonta playing Monday/Tuesday after a layoff hurt the Dragons?

Plattsburgh  at Potsdam

Unbeaten archrivals open their conference season.  Bears return two time tourney MVP Edane Barton, 3pt ace Ernst Ducena, and SUNYAC coach of the year Sherry Dobbs.  Development and maturation of Bears talented newcomers (10 including 8 freshmen) will be the key.
Plattsburgh returns Kris Gibbs-Smith, an amazing athletic talent, and adds two talented Xfers in Anthony Williams (Morgan State) and Travis Gorham (Post U/Ct).  Although Cards lost a myriad of all-conference talent, they may be a better team this year.

Great pairings, will learn a lot about the strength of the conference right from the get go.

[jdex]

Bports,
Yes, indeed, what's up with Eagles? Current roster at Bport site lists just nine players. No Harris, No Williams in addition to expected no Rother this semester

[jdex]

Just realized Brockport played Sunday. Nine man cast lost at Hamilton, 102-88. Trailed 48-38 at half. Shot 29x57 with 10 3s. Hams went 39x78fg with 44-30 board advantage. B. Bellucci 34 pts (12x17fg, 8x10ft), J. Cheves 19 pts (7x13fg, 5 3s), K. Amparo 13 pts (4x10fg)