MBB: State University of New York Athletic Conference

[Dave 'd-mac' McHugh]

This might have been mentioned in the past, so forgive me ... but Buffalo State only has 22 games this season? Only played FIVE so far? Played FOUR of them in November?! And played THREE in the opening week?!

What?!

No mistake. 22 games is correct. Lost an opportunity for xmas holiday tourney that was beyond our control  so 22 game is it (so far).

Two thoughts:

First, that is still one game short of the max, so why not have that end up being 23?

Second, while tournaments fall apart, I know coaches who are figuring those things out a year in advance. Sure, it doesn't work and you are scrambling in the spring and early summer, but losing a tournament with now an extra week at the start of the season (which they used) should mean the ability to find other games even if they are singles. Did this tournament evaporate in October?

Also... there are always events like the D3hoops.com Classic they could come to.

[magicman]

Jan. 10          Four games scheduled in conference play all at 7:30 PM


Geneseo State  at  Plattsburgh State        7:30 PM

The Cardinals and Knights are both coming off bad losses to teams that were nationally ranked. They would like to erase those memories with a win tonight but only one of them can do that. Plattsburgh has won the last 4 games and 8 of the last 10 in this series. The point spread favors Plattsburgh by a 4 point margin and it should be a close game. I think the Cardinals win this one 74-69.   


Buffalo State  at  Cortland State        7:30 PM

The Bengals have been off since December 7th when they beat Fredonia 85-74 in their only conference game to date. They are 3-2 on the season and they will need to get back up to speed in a hurry with Cortland waiting for them in the Dragons' lair. They have yet to play a game on the road with all 5 games taking place in the Sports Arena.

Cortland is coming off 2 wins in Florida, 2 wins to capture the St. John Fisher holiday tournament and a warm up for today's game with a blowout win over Cabrini last Saturday, to stretch their winning  streak to 5 in a row.

The teams have a common opponent in St. John Fisher with the Bengals losing at home 89-83 and Cortland beating Fisher on the road 102-78. If that's any indication, then the Bengals are in trouble.

The oddsmakers think it is, as they have made Cortland a solid 14 point favorite in this one. Cortland has won 4 games in a row and is 8-3 over the last 5 years in this series. The Bengals last win came in the playoffs in February of 2017 and that was at Cortland, so the Bengals know they can win there. But can they do it today against a hot Red Dragon team? I think they come up short and will struggle a bit on the road for the first time, especially off the long layoff. I'm not sure of the status of Cortland's big man, Eric Edwards, who has been out the last 3 games, but I think Cortland wins this one without him as they haven't missed a beat in his absence. Cortland 88 Buffalo State 75

   
Fredonia State  at  Oswego State        7:30 PM

The Blue Devils have struggled again this year. They have 3 wins which is more than they had all of last year, but those 3 wins have come against teams that are a combined 6-30 and one of those teams...Vassar...is 4-6.

The Lakers are streaking again, winning their last 3 contests, after they had dropped a pair of games to Brockport and St Lawrence. It may be a while before the Lakers lose another one. I can see them winning a bakers dozen in a row and while that might not happen, I don't see them losing this game tonight. Neither do the experts as they have made Oswego a huge 28 point favorite here. I can't argue with that. Fredonia has only beaten Oswego once in their last 10 meetings, which came back in February of 2017.
The Lakers may feel a little strange tonight as they are playing at home. All 9 games they have played this year have been on the road. The home crowd, the friendly bounces, the familiar backdrops when shooting, everything points to a big Laker win. Oswego 92 Fredonia 66. 


Brockport State  at  Potsdam State    7:30 PM  The Featured Game of the Night

The last time these two teams faced off was in the playoffs last year at Brockport and the Golden Eagles prevailed by a 94-88 final, but had a double digit lead for most of the 2nd half. It was the first time the Bears had been in the playoffs in 7 years and the Eagles made it a short stay. However 3 weeks before that contest the Bears had the upper hand in a game played in Potsdam, as they upended Brockport by a 78-71 score. That's what the Bears are hoping for tonight...a deja vu moment. That victory last year ended a 16 game losing streak to Brockport that also stretched back to that 2010-11 season.

The Bears come into the game with a 6-3 record and are coming off a controversial 88-85 loss to Purchase back on December 14th. The rust factor may come into play here against the Bears. Brockport played a week ago and beat Alfred 87-64. They are also back to full strength with the return of their 2nd leading scorer and top rebounder from last year, Davante Hagins, who missed the entire first semester. Also back is their top 3 point threat, Antonio Alvarez, who missed their first 6 games. Potsdam has been without transfer Brandon Segar Jr. and his return for tonight's game is questionable.

The oddsmakers have made Brockport a slim 4 point favorite in this game. I think they win by a few more than that, especially if Segar Jr. is absent. I think it will be something like Brockport 82 Potsdam 75.     
   

[magicman]

I had my annual SUNYAC rundown all ready to go a few weeks ago. I worked on it over a number of days and had all the teams ranked from top to bottom. Listed each team's losses to graduation and if known for other reasons, plus added in the new players, again if known, and tried to come up with a pre-season prediction. I wanted to wait until most of the non-conference game were played in November and was going to post right before the first set of conference games took place.

Then, before I could post my rankings my computer went down and I lost everything I had put together. Needless to say I was not a happy camper. I wasn't about to do it over because it's too much work. So I'm listing my predicted order of finish without most of the usual banter. It's the best I could do because of the circumstances.


1.   Brockport State
Originally I had the Golden Eagles at the top of the this list. Then when the rosters were posted there was a glaring omission as their 2nd leading scorer and top rebounder, was no longer listed on the roster. That was a huge loss and I was prepared to drop them down a notch. Then on December 15th, in their Florida tournament, he magically re-appears. Coach Dunne apparently, was just keeping him on ice until he was needed. The Golden Eagles are talented, deep, and athletic.  So Brockport, with all their weapons in place, is my pick to win the regular season title and gain the top seed in the SUNYAC tournament.

2.   Oswego State
The Lakers won't go away. Year after year it seems they are near or at the top of the standings at the end of the season and have won four SUNYAC tournaments in the 8 years that Coach Leone has been there. They brought in another promising freshman to go with their returning veterans and are off to another fine start.

3.   Cortland State
The Red Dragons are also a team that just keep reloading. Coach Spanbauer finds another outstanding player and this one has been hiding in plain sight, right on the Cortland campus. That player and a new big man might be just the pieces that lift the Red Dragons to the top.

4.   Oneonta State
I thought this might be the Year of the Dragon and it still may turn out that way. These Red Dragons return just about everyone from last year and have the experience in the YAC Final Four to go all the way. They started out a little slow this season but seem to be hitting their stride with a 5 game winning streak and are tied for first place in the conference.

5.   Potsdam State
The Bears are off to their best start in 15 years. You have to go back to the 2004-05 season to find a better record than the 6-3 beginning, that Potsdam has fashioned. Two new big men, a transfer and a freshman have fit right in as Coach Bechtel continues to turn the Bears into a contender.

6.   Plattsburgh State
The Cardinals lost more than anyone else through graduation as their entire starting five  departed. Longtime coach Tom Curle, the winningest coach in the program's history, also left to become athletic director at another college. New head coach, Mike Blaine seems to be the right man for the job, though, and I'm convinced he'll have the Cardinals back near the top of the standings in the near future. Plattsburgh brought in some talented freshman and 3 of them have cracked the starting lineup. They also have some returning rotation players that will give them a chance to grab that last playoff spot.

7.   Buffalo State
Another young team, the Bengals will challenge for the final playoff spot and if they improve as the season progresses may even move up the ladder a bit higher. They lost their top scorer from last year and several other rotation regulars but still have a solid nucleus and a freshman guard that has moved right into the starting lineup.

8.   New Paltz
The Hawks lost 2 starters from last year but return their 3 top scorers from a team that just missed the playoffs by losing a tiebreaker to Potsdam for the 6th seed. They will struggle to finish that high this season. It's entirely possible they could finish in playoff position but last year they had some big upsets against Brockport, Cortland and Oneonta (twice) to get to 9 wins, I just don't see that happening this year.

9.   Geneseo State
The Knights could improve off last years' 9th place finish especially if they can find a way to win tonight against Plattsburgh. While their record is only 3-6 their losses have all come against teams that have a winning record and are a combined 48-16. They return most of the rotation from last year losing only 2 regulars. They have been replaced with 2 freshman who are getting significant playing time. I expect this team to improve as the season progresses and wouldn't be surprised if they do move up in the standings. A playoff spot seems to be a reach, though.

10.   Fredonia
Well, somebody has to be at the bottom and unfortunately it's the Blue Devils once again. The good news is they have already eclipsed last years' total of 2 win's by starting out 3-4 this year. The bad news is 2 of those wins came against 1-12 teams and 1 of their losses was to Pitt-Bradford who is 1-11. I'm hopeful this young team can turn things around but the YAC is tough and I don't see many more victories coming their way.                         

[thebear]

I'll Let Magic post his stellar analysis

Genny beat Platty 61-59 on a Gannon FG with :27 left.
Potsdam beat Brockport 86-70 led by new addition Isaiah Brown with 26 pts in his Potsdam debut. 
Jayquan Thomas added 20 second half points. 
Austin Grunder continued his stellar play with 35 points and 16 rebounds as Cortland crushed Buffalo State 107-80.
Despite a strangely quiet Jordan Sparks, Oswego crushed Fredonia 67-44.

[magicman]

Geneseo 61  Platsburgh 59

Very competitive game in Plattsburgh with the outcome in doubt even as the buzzer went off. Geneseo was down 59-56 with 1:35 to go and after a Plattsburgh turnover, the Knights got a jumper from Michael Gannon to get within a point with 1:20 left. Plattsurgh took a time out to set something up, but when play resumed committed another turnover. The Knights took a time out and Geneseo's Gannon scored again to put the Knights up 60-59 with 27 seconds left. Plattsburgh chose to play on and went for the go ahead score with 12 seconds left but came up empty. Plattsburgh fouled Gannon, who made the first and missed the second. The Cardinals' Travis Cox grabbed the rebound but Geneseo, with fouls to give, used them at the 7 second and 5 second mark. Plattsburgh used their final time out and Nick DeAngelis drove to the hoop but couldn't get his shot to go down. Plattsburgh's Adam Jaquish timed it just right, grabbed the rebound and put it back, all in one move, while in mid air, but the ref waved it off despite the protests of nearly everyone in the building. Unfortunately it's Division III and not DI so there is no video replay to make sure the refs got it right.  (A fellow sitting to my left was recording the action and when he played it back, he stated the ball was out of Jaquish's hands when the lights came on the backboard.)

Plattsburgh had ample ways to win this game without a last gasp attempt, but didn't use good judgement when it mattered. They led nearly the entire 2nd half and a layup by Erik Salo with 8:56 to play gave the Cardinals a 52-45 lead. From that point on Plattsburgh had 15 possessions and only scored on three of them. Six of them ended with a turnover and six others with a missed field goal attempt. You won't win many games in crunch time with those stats.

Plattsburgh
Nick DeAngelis captured scoring honors with 22 points. He added 6 rebounds, 2 steals and 1 assist.
Travis Cox had 12 points, 4 steals, 2 rebounds, 1 block and 1 assist.
Axel Rodriguez also had 12 points, 2 assists and a block.
Erik Salo had 8 points, and a career high 11 rebounds.
Adam Jaquish also had a career high with 13 rebounds, 4 assists, 2 points and a steal.

Geneseo
Michael Gannon was the high scorer for the Knights with 21 points. He added 5 rebounds, 2 assists and a block. He was huge in crunch time as he scored Geneseo's final 5 points and 12 of their last 16.
Elijah Wingfield had 15 points and 4 rebounds in 23 minutes off the bench.
Joseph Harclerode had a game high 16 rebounds, 4 points, 3 assists and a steal.
Alex Merhige had 7 points, 8 rebounds, 4 steals, 3 assists and a block.


Plattsburgh drops to 4-6 overall (1-2 SUNYAC) and will take on Brockport State on Saturday at 4:00 PM.

Geneseo improves to 4-6 overall (1-2 SUNYAC) and will travel to Potsdam for a Saturday sfternoon game against the Bears at 4:00 PM.

[magicman]

Potsdam 86 Brockport State 70

I didn't see this one coming. Not sure if anyone did. I could see Potsdam winning at home but not by a 16 point margin. Apparently my alma mater wants to be taken seriously this year.

Not sure where Coach Bechtel had his latest hidden gem hiding but the debut of Isaish Brown certainly made a big splash. Like a poker player with aces up his sleeve, the Bears' coach brought out his best hand, when the big game was in town.

Potsdam got the early lead when they broke out of a 10-10 tie at the 13:21 mark and went on a 14-2 run over the next 3 minutes fueled by 10 points from Danny Delsol-Lowry. Up 24-12 the Bears couldn't hold on to the lead as Brockport, with their deep rotation, got points from 6 different players in an 8 minute span to knot the game up at 34-34. Brockport couldn't get the go ahead score, however and the Bears went back in front, 41-37 at the break.

Potsdam continued to lead by 2 possessions through the early stages of the 2nd period.
The Bears got a big first half from Isaiah Brown with 13 points and Delsol-Lowry with 14 points. Now it was Jayquan Thomas who was heating up. He scored 5 points on Potsdam's first two possessions and Brown continued to score inside. The Golden Eagles were getting big efforts from Justin Summers and Tyler Collins. They were down 46-39 when Collins hit a 3 pointer to bring them within 4. Brown scored on a jumper for Potsdam, and Summers nailed a threeball for Port.  Tyrese Baptiste scored inside for the Bears to make it 50-45 but again Collins drained a three and Summers scored in the paint. The score was tied and Brockport looked to take over.

This is where the Bears would normally continue to play hard but manage to come out on the short end more often than not over the last dozen years or...pre JB (that's pre Jim Bechtel). Tonight the Bears said no way, not in our house and wouldn't let the Golden Eagles get a lead. Brown scored, Thomas scored, and then Brown scored again. The lead was back to a two possession margin. For every Brockport action there was a Potsdam reaction. The lead grew to 7....then it was 9....Thomas scored again and it was 11 at 66-55 with 11:22 left to play.  Summers scored inside and Collins drained another threeball to cut it to a 6 point lead. Brown scored inside and then Thomas did also. In between it was Isaiah Joseph or Aaron Armstrong putting points on the board for the Bears. The lead was now fluctuating between 6 and 10 points. Up 74-68 the Bears got a 3 pointer from Brown and when Port came up empty on 2 straight trips, Thomas hit another three to make it 80-68 with 3:42 to go. Twice more Brockport missed on their end and this time Brown had a huge dunk, that signaled this game was over.

Potsdam
Isaiah Brown was the games' high scorer with 26 points. He made the first shot he took in a Potsdam uniform and scored 13 in each half. He added 7 rebounds and a steal. He is a 6'6" sophomore forward who tranferred from a juco out in Missouri. (Isaiah's from the Queens area) He's certainly off to a fine start. Welcome to Potsdam.

Jayquan Thomas had 20 points and 5 assists. He scored all 20 points in the 2nd half.
Danny Delsol-Lowry had 16 points, 5 rebounds, 5 assists and 4 steals.
Isaiah Joseph had 8 points, 4 rebounds and 3 steals.
Aaron Armstrong had 6 points,4 rebounds, 4 assists and a steal.
Tyrese Baptiste had 4 points, 4 rebounds, 3 blocks, 2 assists and 2 steals.

Brockport
Justin Summers led Brockport with 19 points, 4 rebounds, an assist and a block.
Tyler Collins had 16 points, 3 assists, 2 rebounds, and a steal.
Jahidi Wallace had 15 points and 6 rebounds.
Devante Hagins had a game high 12 rebounds, 8 points, 3 steals and 1 assist.

Potsdam shot 51% from the field (35x68), 36% from long distance (9x25) and 70% from the line (7x10) as they beat the Golden Eagles in all 3 areas.

Brockport shot 39.2% from the field (29x74) 23.1% from long range (6x26) and 42.9% from the line (6x14).

Both teams had 43 rebounds and they both had 16 turnovers.

Potsdam improves to 7-3 overall (2-1 SUNYAC) and will host Geneseo on Saturday afternoon at 4:00 PM

Brockport falls to 7-3 overall (2-1 SUNYAC) and will head on over to Plattsburgh to face the Cardinals at 4:00 PM today. 

[magicman]

Cortland State 107  Buffalo State 80

I thought this game might turn into a track meet. I also thought the score would be closer. Buff State hung with Cortland for the first 8 minutes of the game and were only trialing 15-14 when the Red Dragons went on a 14-4 streak that opened up a double digit lead at 29-18 with 9:39 to play. The lead would vary between 7 and 13 points until the Bengals down 42-33 got back to back layups from Argjend Imeri to cut the lead to 5 points with 3:21 left in the half. Austin Grunder hit a 3 pointer for Cortland and Ben Walters scored inside. The lead was back to 10 points and it remained there at the break.

Needing to cut into the lead the Bengals got a 3 ball from Jordan Christopher to start the 2nd half. Cortland missed on their end and Sheldon Adams hit a jumper to cut the lead to 5 points. Austin Grunder scored inside for Cortland and after the Bengals missed it was Grunder's turn to bury a three. Seconds later Ryan Schmadel did the same and after Buff State missed another shot, Grunder was fouled and he made them both. Suddenly the lead was 13 points and Grunder added another triple to make it 65-49 with 16:14 still left to play. The Bengals never got the lead below 11 after that and it continued to grow until it reached 27 points at 105-78. The Bengals simply had no answer for Austin Grunder but then neither has anyone else that he's went up against. Buff State would score and Grunder would answer time and time again.

Cortland
Austin Grunder scored 35 points and had 16 rebounds. He also had 3 assists and 3 steals. Somehow a double-double doesn't seem descriptive enough for stats so large.

Ben Walters had 21 points, 3 rebounds and 1 assist. He was 5x8 from long range.

Ryan Schmadel had 20 points, 6 rebounds, 3 assists and 3 steals. He was 6x13 from long range.

Brendan Fitzpatrick had 10 points, 5 rebounds and 5 assists.

Buffalo State
Jordan Christopher had a team high 14 points, and a team high 11 rebounds to get a double-double. He also had a rebound, an assist and a steal.

Kay Grant also had 14 points, 4 rebounds an assist and a steal.
Sheldon Adams had 13 points, 8 rebounds an assists and a steal.
Aaron Davis had 12 points, 5 assists and 1 rebound.
Argjend Imeri had 11 points, 3 rebounds, 2 assists and 2 steals.

Cortland had an excellent day shooting the ball as they were 39x67 (58.2%) They were 18x37 from long range (48.6%)....that's how you hit the century mark....the 3rd game in a row that the Red Dragons have done so, which is a new school record. 
Buffalo State was 31x74 (41.9%) from the field and 8x30 from long range (26.7%). The Bengals were a perfect 10x10 from the line. Cortland was 11x17 from the line.

The Red Dragons had 38 rebounds to 34 by the Bengals. Cortland had 11 turnovers to 10 for Buffalo State.

Cortland wins their 6th game in a row and improves to 8-2 (2-1 SUNYAC). They will host  Fredonia at 4:00 PM today.

Buffalo State drops to 3-3 overall (1-1 SUNYAC). They will travel up to Oswego to play the Lakers at 4:00 PM today   

[magicman]

Oswego State  67  Fredonia State 44

The Blue Devils came to play and they hung with the Lakers for most of the first half in this contest. They actually had a lead for quite a while and were still up 20-18 with 7:11 left in the first period. Then the Lakers' Caleb Cook hit a triple, and Brandon Gartland hit one also. Joe Sullivan hit a jumper and Liam Sanborn scored inside. Suddenly it was 28-20 and Oswego was on their way. They were up 28-23 at the break.

Fredonia scored immediately, from long distance, to cut the margin down to two points. Oswego struck back with a vengeance as they went on 20-2 run that blew the game wide open. There was 13:25 left to play and the score was now 48-28. Fredonia never got it below 17 points the rest of the way.

Oswego
Liam Sanborn had 15 points, 3 rebounds, an assist and a steal.
Joe Sullivan had a double-double of 14 points and 11 rebounds. He also had 5 steals and 2 assists.
Brandan Gartland had 13 points 4 rebounds and 1 assist.
Jeremiah Sparks had 6 rebounds, 4 points, 1 assist and 1 block.
Kaleb Cook had 7 points, 2 assists, a steal and a rebound.

Fredonia
Dydy Bryan had  14 points, 8 rebounds and 5 assists.
Tyler Roberts had 13 points, a rebound and a block.
Moussa Samassa had 7 rebounds, 5 points and 3 blocks.

Oswego improves to 8-2 overall (2-1 SUNYAC) and will play Buffalo State today at 4 PM.


Fredonia drops to 3-5 overall (0-2 SUNYAC) and will play Cortland at 4 :00 PM today.

[magicman]

Jan. 11        All ten teams in action today


Fredonia State  at  Cortland State        4:00 PM

The Red Dragons are favored by 28 points in this one I think they roll on by a score of 86-61.


Geneseo State  at  Potsdam State        4:00 PM

The Bears are hoping for a 2-0 weekend. The oddsmakers favor them by 9 points. I think they win by a few more. Potsdam  77 Geneseo 63.

   
Brockport State  at  Plattsburgh State        4:00 PM

The Golden Eagles will not want to go home 0-2 on the weekend. The Cardinals don't either but Brockport will be too much for Plattsburgh. The point spread has Brockport  favored by 10. I think they win by a few more. Brockport 86 Plattsburgh 71.   

Buffalo State  at  Oswego State        4:00 PM

The Lakers are 13 point favorites in this game. I think that's about right. Oswego 89 Buffalo State 77.    

New Paltz State  at  Oneonta State        4:00 PM

Oneonta looking to take over sole possession of first place with a win here. The oddsmakers have them listed as a 14 point favorite. Oneonta wins 82-69.   

[magicman]

Halftime scores

Brockport 46 Plattsburgh 35

Cortland leads Fredonia 54-33

Geneseo leads Potsdam 28-27

Oneonta 44 New Paltz 29

Oswego 39 Buffalo State 23    3 minutes left in first half.

[magicman]

Cortland 96 Fredonia 66    Final score.

[magicman]

Potsdam State 68 Geneseo State 58 Final score.

[magicman]

Oneonta State 84  New Paltz State 76  Final score.

[magicman]

Brockport State 94 Plattsburgh State 72   Final score

[magicman]

Oswego State 86  Buffalo State 66  Final score.