MBB: State University of New York Athletic Conference

[magicman]

Quick recap of some Saturday games.

Buffalo State 89 Plattsburgh State 82

Buffalo State got the lead for good with 10:44 to go in the first half and went up by 13 points. Cardinals came back and closed it down to five at the break. Plattsburgh got even closer early in the 2nd period and 2 free throws from the Cards' Erik Salo made it a one possesion game at 54-52 with 18 minutes to go. Bengals still had a 4 point lead when Plattsburgh's Nick DeAngelis drained a 3 pointer to make it 63-62 but Sheldon Adams hit back to back treys to create some separation and after a pair of Cardinal turnovers, Kay Grant made them pay, as he scored inside on 2 straight possesions to put Buff State up by 11 at 73-62. The Cardinals wouldn't go away, though, and cut the lead to 6 points, then 3 points and finally got it down to a single point at 79-78, with 3:32 remaining, on a jumper by Axel Rodriguez. The Cardinals couldn't sustain the momentum however, and failed to score for almost 3 minutes as the Bengals opened up an 8 point lead and had no trouble closing the game out.

Sheldon Adams had a game high 27 points, Jordan Christopher had 23 points and Kay Grant had 20 points to lead the Bengals.

Plattsburgh got a career high 25 points from freshman Erik Salo and 16 points from Travis Cox. Cox had a double-double as he had a game high 10 rebounds. Travis is the hardest working 6'1" guy in the SUNYAC conference.

Buffalo State finally ended their long losing streak and I could see this coming as they played very well the day before at Potsdam. I would have picked them to win except they were playing my Cardinals and I couldn't do that when I thought we had a chance for the W. The Bengals got out of the cellar and while they won't make the playoffs this year they can still spoil the chances of several other teams, especially their next game which is against Geneseo. They can do the Cardinals a big favor if they win that one. Go Bengals!

Plattsburgh at the end of the weekend is still in playoff position and though, tied with Geneseo, does hold the current tiebreaker over the Knights.



Cortland State 82  Oswego State 72

The Lakers had the early lead in this contest and were up by as many as 11 points. Cortland caught them with 3:37 left and took the lead for good on a buzzer beater from downtown, by Austin Grunder. Up 35-34 at the break, the Red Dragons stretched the lead to 10 points early in the 2nd period and never let the Lakers get closer than 5 points the rest of the way.

Austin Grunder captured both scoring and rebounding honors with another double-double of 32 points and 12 rebounds. He continues to be near the top of the NCAA standings in total rebounds and double-doubles. Eric Edwards had 18 points and Bredan Fitzpatrick had 10 points with 8 boards.

Oswego got a big game from Joe Sullivan with 25 points and 5 rebounds. Brandan Gartland had 20 points and Liam Sanborn had 14.

These same two teams could end up tangling again in the first round of the playoffs. as the 4 and 5 seeds. A game that would take place in Oswego is my prediction. I don't see either one moving up to get a first round bye.

Brockport will finish 15-3 if they get beat by both Oswego and Cortland. I don't see them losing to Fredonia or Geneseo. At 15-3 that still doesn't let Cortland or Oswego get  past the Golden Eagles. I actually think Brockport finishes 17-1 or 16-2 and claims the top spot. I also think Potsdam comes in 2nd and gets the other bye.

Other Saturday scores

Oneonta 74 Geneseo 47

Oneonta got 23 points from Kevin Mackin, 14 points from Andres Rivera, and 11 points from Harrison Deegan. Joe Bull still missing from the Oneonta lineup. With 6 games left and 3 of those against Cortland, Oswego and Potsdam, his absence will be felt. I think they end up as the 3 seed or at worst a 4 seed but will still have a home playoff game in the first round.

Geneseo got 12 points from Michael Gannon.  Alex Merhige and Aaron Davis both had 8 points each.

The Knights are in a tight battle with Plattsburgh for the 6th and final playoff spot. The Cardinals might have a slight advantage with 3 of their last 4 games at home while the Knights have to play 3 of their last 4 on the road.

Brockport 81 New Paltz 59

Tyree Grimsley led Brockport with 19 points off the bench. Danny Ashley and Jahidi Wallace both had 15 points. Ashley also had a game high 7 rebounds.

Rj Meyers-Turner was the game's high scorer with 21 points to lead New Paltz.
Scott Reisert added 10 points.


Potsdam State 76  Fredonia 71

Once again the Bears did not play up to their potential and that's several games in the past 10 days where that has happened. They had an 11 point first half lead that led to a 37-28 advantage at the half. The Blue Devils wouldn't go away and stayed within striking distance for the first 7 minutes of the 2nd period. The Bears led by 10 but Fredonia was only 2 points down at 42-40 with 12:45 to go. The Bears went back up by 7 and the Blue Devils closed to a single point at 53-52 with 7:21 left. The next possesion Fredonia grabbed the lead at 54-53. It was the only lead they had and it was only for 16 seconds, but with just 6:29 left in the game it made the Bears fans a bit anxious, I'm sure. Potsdam went back up by 8 points but with just 15 seconds remaining Fredonia was only down 74-71. They had to foul and Potsdam made them both, to come away with the 5 point win.

Jayquan Thomas led the Bears and had scoring honors with 25 points. Isaiah Brown had 13 and Danny Delsol-Lowry had 12. Tyrese Baptiste had a game high 11 rebounds to go with his 8 points.

Dydy Bryan had 16 for Fredonia.  Moussa Samassa and De'Quan Smith both had 13 points. Samassa led Fredonia with 10 rebounds to get his double-double.





               

[magicman]

As I mentioned yesterday, Brockport did move up a bit in the D3hoops Top 25 poll. The Golden Eagles were in the #36 spot last week in the Others Receiving Votes category with 6 points. This week they have moved up to #28 in the ORV and have a total of 15 points. RPI has 7 points and Hobart has 4 points. No other teams from the East Region are getting votes. 

[magicman]

Potsdam State's Isaiah Brown has received the SUNYAC Player of the Week award for the 3rd time in the past 4 weeks. Here's the write up from the SUNYAC website.


"CORTLAND, N.Y. - The State University of New York Athletic Conference (SUNYAC) has named Potsdam's Isaiah Brown (Queens, N.Y.) the PrestoSports Men's Basketball Athlete of the Week for the third time this season.

Brown helped the Bears to a 3-0 week in SUNYAC play, averaging 23.0 ppg. and 7.0 rpg in victories over Plattsburgh, Buffalo State and Fredonia. On Tuesday, the sophomore scored a career-high 37 points on 48.3-percent shooting and grabbed nine rebounds in an 89-82 win at Plattsburgh. Brown scored 19 points and added six boards in a 73-67 home victory against the Bengals. He then chipped in 13 points and six rebounds in a 76-71 home win over the Blue Devils to complete the perfect week."

Congratulations to Isaiah for another excellent week. He now has matched Cortland's Austin Grunder who is also a 3 time winner this season.

[magicman]

Feb. 11             Three games on the schedule for today    


Buffalo State  at  Geneseo State        7:30 PM

The Bengals hoping to start a winning streak and I'm hoping they do as well. First opportunity for the Bengals to put together back to back wins since December 7th. Geneseo wants to stay with Plattsburgh and this is their best chance to do so and perhaps even move ahead of the Cardinals who have two tough opponents on the road this weekend. After this game the Knights end the season on the road against 3 of the league leaders. I think this is their only chance for a 6th conference win.

The experts have made Geneseo a 5 point favorite in this one. I want Buffalo State to win so I'll take them to pull off the mild upset. They are so happy to get the monkey off their back I think they play like they did this past weekend. Buffalo State 77 Geneseo 74. 

   
Fredonia State  at  Brockport State        7:30 PM

The Blue Devils have their work cut out for them if they hope to put one in the win column here. Brockport is firing on all cylinders and has now won 11 in a row. Fredonia is coming off 6 straight losses. the oddsmakers have made the Golden Eagles a 25 point favorite and why not...they won at Fredonia just a week ago, by a 28 point margin, 88-60. Tonight will be more of the same. Brockport 92 Fredonia 63.   



Cortland State  at  Oneonta State        7:30 PM     Featured Game of the Night

The C Dragons lost the first go around with their cousins but didn't have big man Eric Edwards in that contest. Tonight the O Dragons look to be the team that has a man down, as Joe Bull who scored 17 points and pulled down 13 rebounds in the first match up, hasn't played in the last 3 games. Without him, Oneonta will be hard pressed to keep Austin Grunder and Edwards from controlling the boards, which was a key reason that Oneonta got that win last month.

Both teams are hoping to still gain some ground in the playoff race. Oneonta still seeks the #1 seed or at least a first round bye. They will need help to get by Brockport, but control their own destiny for the #2 seed. Cortland hoping for a home game in the first round of the playoffs, can't afford any more losses. Cortland has won 3 in a row after putting their lost weekend in the North Country behind them. Oneonta won big on Saturday over Geneseo, after a loss to Brockport the day before. 

The oddsmakers have made Oneonta a slim 2 point home favorite. I like Cortland to pick up a win here and even the season series. Cortland 83 Oneonta 80. 

[All-Time]

Magicman
Little disappointed in your prediction tonight.
The Real Red Dragons will prevail tonight at Dewar arena!!!!!!
Let's Go Red Dragons!!!!

Lets GOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

[magicman]

You may very well be right All-Time. I only post what the crystal ball spit out. It was a pretty fuzzy crystal ball, though, must be all of the recent snow we've gotten.

[magicman]

Geneseo lead Buffalo State  43-23 at the half. That one surprises me. Bengals need to come out of the break with a different attitude.

No live stats as the stream isn't on. 

[magicman]

Brockport leads Fredonia 51-29 at the break.

Oneonta leads Cortland 43-38 at the half.

[magicman]

Brockport up big over Fredonia at the break 51-29.

Fredonia with the first lead at 3-0 and 5-3 but the Golden Eagles took over and soared to a 19-9 lead and increased it to 31-11 with 9:19 to play. 

Montgomery Stroman with 11 points for Port. Jahidi Wallace with 10.

Tyler Roberts with 8 points for Fredonia. Moussa Samassa has 6 points.

[magicman]

Tuesday's Final Scores:

Geneseo 78  Buffalo State 62

Brockport State 104  Fredonia 57

Oneonta State 92  Cortland State 69

[magicman]

All-Time hit the nail on the head with his prediction of Oneonta taking down Cortland despite the absence of Joe Bull. I think it's time for him to take over my job of predicting the outcomes. I fumbled the ball on that one. Also missed the Buffalo State- Geneseo game as the Knights just blew by the Bengals from the start.   

[scooterman]

I watched the Bport-Fredonia game last night on the internet and felt bad for the Blue Devils. The Eagles were down 5-3 early but jumped to 19-9 lead. They never looked back and the Blue Devils never looked up. Fredonia really appeared to not want to be there. Down 51-29 at the half, Fredonia couldn't get anything going against the Eagles defense. Once again it was a total team effort by the Eagles that put this game out of reach. There team chemistry is at an all-time high. They are fun to watch. Keep it up, Eagles!!!!

[All-Time]

Magicman I will leave all the predictions in your hands.
Nobody and I mean Nobody is Better than you.

Still hoping to be sitting next to you at the Championship!!!
But Brockport might be in the way of one of our teams.

[Dave 'd-mac' McHugh]

First Regional Rankings are out: https://www.d3hoops.com/notables/2020/02/men-regional-rankings-first

[magicman]

Magicman I will leave all the predictions in your hands.
Nobody and I mean Nobody is Better than you.

Still hoping to be sitting next to you at the Championship!!!
But Brockport might be in the way of one of our teams.

All-Time, as always your words are too kind. Believe me I would love to sit next to you and watch some championship basketball in Potsdam or possibly Oneonta if that is what it takes. (of course, I prefer Plattsburgh most of all) However, like the young fan  who once said .....say it ain't so, Joe....the harsh reality is, the championship will be won on the Golden Eagles home court....and I wish it wasn't so. (Now if that predection doesn't jinx them, nothing will.)