BROCKPORT, N.Y. – The College at Brockport men's basketball team dropped a heated battle to SUNY Cortland on Friday in State University of New York Athletic Conference (SUNYAC) play, 79-74.
The Golden Eagles move to 18-6 and 13-4 in the SUNYAC while the Red Dragons have a mark of 17-7 and 12-5 in league play.
Both teams traded shots to open play for a 10-10 tie at the 16:38 mark. The Green and Gold began to pull away thanks to an 8-0 run with buckets from
Marcus Blythers,
Clifton Lyerly and
Hamed Shamseldin. The largest lead for Brockport came at the 12:17 mark, as they posted a 24-14 advantage.
After relinquishing their lead, Brockport battled back with a Blythers layup and a long triple from Shamseldin, giving the Green and Gold a one-point lead. The rest of the first half was neck-and-neck until a Shamseldin three started a 10-3 run, taking a 44-37 lead into the break.
Brockport shot 54.8 percent from the field and had two scorers in double digits, with Shamseldin leading with 13 and Lyerly adding 10. Blythers knocked in seven points of his own, and had three blocks. The Golden Eagles defense forced 10 turnovers and held the Red Dragons to 44.4 percent shooting from the field.
The heated race continued in the second half, as Cortland hit a three to open play. Shamseldin had the Brockport response with a trey, giving Brockport the 49-40 edge. Brockport was unable to hold the lead due to timely three-point shooting by their opposition. Three straight shots from behind the arc cut the Brockport lead to two at the 14:31 mark. Neither team would own a lead larger than two until the 4:30 mark of the second half.
The Golden Eagles created some breathing room thanks to two free throws from Lyerly and two more from
Justin Summers, which gave the Green and Gold a 71-65 lead at the 3:41 mark. Brockport was unable to withstand their opponents hot three-point shooting, and would fall by a final score of 79-74.
Shamseldin led the Golden Eagles in scoring with 24 points and grabbed seven rebounds. Lyerly battled all game and came away with a double-double, with 18 points and 13 rebounds. Defensively, the Green and Gold forced 16 turnovers thanks to seven blocks shots and five steals.
The Golden Eagles wrap up their regular season tomorrow, Saturday Feb. 18 when they host Oswego State at 2 p.m. Brockport will celebrate senior day prior to tip, with all six of their senior members honored in a ceremony held prior to the contest.
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