BROCKPORT, N.Y. – Sparked by the hot play of freshman
Danny Ashley, The College at Brockport men's basketball team took care of business in the opening round of the State University of New York Athletic Conference (SUNYAC) playoffs, bypassing SUNY Potsdam, 94-88.
The Golden Eagles survive and advance with a 16-10 mark on the season while the Bears likely see their 2018-19 campaign come to a close with a 13-13 record.
With the season on the line, both squads came to play, and it showed throughout the hotly contested first half. Neither team was able to gain much breathing room, with Brockport going straight to work, posting a 4-0 lead after back-to-back scores from
Antonio Alvarez and
Justin Summers. That lead would quickly disappear however, by the 16-minute mark when a 6-0 Potsdam run gave the Bears their first edge at 8-7.
Brockport posted the answer, with a 7-0 run of their own, featuring scores from Ashley and an old-fashioned three-point play from
Jahidi Wallace to take a 13-8 lead at the 14:26 mark. The tight battle ensued, featuring eight lead-changes as the teams fought to take an advantage.
The Green and Gold were finally able to breakthrough and gain some breathing room in the final minutes of the half, riding a 13-2 run due in large part to converting at the charity stripe. The Brockport lead swelled to double-digits for the first time with less than a minute to play after back-to-back scores from Ashley, including a triple, and four Wallace free throws. After a pair of Bears free throws, head coach
Greg Dunne's squad would take a 42-34 advantage into the halftime break.
At the mid-way point, Ashley led all scorers with 17 points to go with three steals and a pair of assists while Wallace chipped in nine. The Golden Eagles forced 12 Potsdam turnovers, capitalizing with 11 points and won the first-half battle in the paint by a margin of 20-14.
In the second frame the Golden Eagles looked comfortable with their lead and fought to maintain it. The Green and Gold had to hold off a Bears charge, as Potsdam chipped away at the Brockport advantage after a pair of free throws and a triple cut the lead to five with 15:27 to play. The Golden Eagles had the answer however, as
Chris Atkinson knocked down a trey, and Ashley weaved through the lane to post the 58-48 edge with 13:29 to play.
Brockport started to ride the momentum and pull away with the contest in the final minutes of play, taking advantage of several fast break opportunities and connecting on open looks from beyond the arc. After back-to-back layups from Summers and Atkinson, an Ashley trey put the exclamation point on a Brockport run that pushed the Green and Gold lead to 79-62 with just over five minutes remaining.
With their season on the line, the Green and Gold had to hold off the charging Bears and did so effectively in the waning minutes of the contest despite several Potsdam advances. Securing the win at the charity stripe, Brockport brought home the 94-88 win.
On the night, Ashley led all scorers, pouring in a career-high 34 points to go with six assists, four steals and four rebounds. Atkinson was a key contributor off the bench, scoring 15 points in 25 minutes.
The Golden Eagles will be back in action in the semi-final round of the SUNYAC Championships, hosted by the No. 1 seed SUNY Oswego. The Green and Gold will face the No. 2 seed SUNY Plattsburgh at 5:30 p.m. on Feb. 22.
Be sure to stay up to date on all your Golden Eagle news, scores, and awards by following @BportAthletics on Twitter and by liking the "Brockport Golden Eagles" Facebook page.
