ALFRED, NY - Hartwick came up two points short, 69-67, at Alfred University's McLane Center in an Empire 8 men's basketball game on Sunday. The Hawks led by nine points with six minutes to play, but the Saxons battled back to take the lead late and hung on for the victory. 'Wick slips to 8-11 overall and 5-6 in the conference standings. Alfred jumps to 8-10 and 2-8.
Chris Ryder (Port Washington, NY/Port Washington) registered 19 points, with 16 coming in the second half, to lead Hartwick. Mark Blazek (Erie, PA/Erie Cathedral Prep) contributed 16 points. He also added four steals and was a perfect 7-for-7 from the free-throw line. Kyle Phillips (Ashland, MA/Ashland) contributed 11 points, James Mantas (Niskayuna, NY/CBA) recorded eight points, five assists, and a team-best six rebounds, and Martin McCann (Hopewell Junction, NY/Our Lady of Lourdes) netted seven second-half points.
The game featured 13 lead changes and six tie scores. In the first half, neither team led by more than three points for the final 14 minutes of the session. After a 26-26 tie game at the break, a Phillips' layup at the start of the second half gave the Hawks the lead, and Hartwick held onto the advantage for the next 15 minutes of action.
Midway through the second half, Hartwick started an 11-3 run to jump out to a nine-point edge, 57-48. Ryder netted six points in the run, including a basket and subsequent free throw after a Saxon foul with 6:05 remaining. The lead was short-lived, however, as Alfred scored nine straight points in less than two minutes to even the score at 57.
A Ryder jumper with 2:56 left gave the Hawks a two-point advantage, but the lead would change hands another five times in the next two minutes of action. A pair of foul shots from Blazek briefly gave 'Wick a one-point edge (63-62) with 64 seconds left, but a layup from Alfred's Mike Stopera with 51 ticks to go gave the hosts the lead for good.
In the final minute, Stopera would give his team three-point leads twice with free throws, but each time the Hawks converted to cut the deficit to one. Blazek would find Ryder underneath the hoop for an easy layup with 13 seconds left and the Hawks trailed 68-67. Hartwick full-court pressure would then force an Alfred turnover to give the Hawks a chance at the game-winning basket.
After a timeout, Phillips got the ball in the paint, but his jumper in heavy traffic wouldn't fall. 'Wick fouled and Stopera hit 1-of-2 from the line with four seconds left forcing the Hawks to go the length of the court for a chance at a tie or the win. 'Wick, however, could not produce a shot and the Saxons survived for the win.
Stopera finished with a game-high 25 points. Jared Patt and Matt Johnson added 12 and 11 points, respectively.
The Hawks, who shot 55.3% from the field in the game, will look to rebound from the loss next Friday at Nazareth.
