OSWEGO, N.Y. – In a clash of the two top State University of New York Athletic Conference (SUNYAC) teams, a College at Brockport men's basketball comeback wasn't enough, as the Golden Eagle charge fell just short on Friday night, falling 78-75.
Brockport moves to 15-4 on the season and add just their second league loss at 10-2, while the Lakers improve to 14-4 and 10-1 in conference action.
After fighting back to erase a sizable Laker lead, the Green and Gold came up just short in the final seconds of play when a triple to tie from
Devonn Gavin went just long. The Golden Eagles fought back from a 16-point deficit to give themselves a chance, but couldn't overtake the Lakers.
Head coach
Greg Dunne's squad got off to a smooth start in the first half of action, working out to a four-point lead after scores on back-to-back possessions from
Clifton Lyerly and
Cordell Torres. Oswego had the answer, with four straight points, but Lyerly was able to regain the lead with a bucket in the lane for the 6-4 edge by the 17:23 mark.
The Green and Gold defense struggled to stifle the Oswego offense, and saw the Lakers go on a 12-2 run to take a 25-12 lead with nine minutes to play. The Golden Eagles regained their footing with back-to-back scores from
Marcus Blythers and a pair of layups from
Hamed Shamseldin and Lyerly, cutting the Brockport deficit to single-digits.
Following a triple from Gavin, which made the count 34-23, the final five minutes of the half saw a drought from the floor for both teams, as the only points posted came from the charity stripe. With both squads making trips, the Green and Gold headed into the break trailing 38-28.
In the second half Brockport fought to keep pace with their counterparts, but it seemed that every time the Green and Gold made up ground, the Lakers had an answer. The Golden Eagles were able to chip away at the Laker lead, behind a 15-4 run to the 4:35 mark. The streak was capped off by a pair of three's from Gavin and Shamseldin, making the count 64-59.
Despite the Laker lead swelling back to eight, the Golden Eagles were not ready to throw in the towel, knocking down a pair of treys, including a Smith triple that whittled the Brockport deficit to three with just over a minute remaining.
In the final 12 seconds of action, the Golden Eagles worked the Oswego lead to just one point on two different occasions, but the solid free throw shooting of the Lakers wouldn't allow the Golden Eagles make their deficit vanish, as the Green and Gold fell 78-75.
Four Golden Eagles worked into double-figures, with Gavin leading the way with 18 points and six boards. Shamseldin chipped in 16, with three triples and three assists while Lyerly added 12 points. Torres netted 10 with three boards and one steal.
As a team, Brockport improved its shooting as the night continued, posting a 44 percent effort from the floor in the second half with 6-of-15 shooting from three-point range. The Green and Gold dominated the inside game, with a 22-12 advantage in the paint and a 7-4 edge in second chance points.
The Golden Eagles will look to bounce back, as they are back in action on Saturday Jan. 28, when they continue their road trip at SUNY Cortland.
Be sure to stay up to date on all of your Golden Eagle scores and awards by following @BportAthletics on Twitter and by liking the "Brockport Golden Eagles" Facebook page.
