ONEONTA, NY - Hartwick (8-13, 5-8 E8) led by as many as 11 points in the first half, but Ithaca bounced back to record an 82-72 win over the Hawks at Lambros Arena on Friday evening. The Bombers connected on 13 three-point baskets, including eight from Jordan Marcus in the game. The win moves Ithaca to 16-7 overall and 9-5 in the Empire 8. The loss is the Hawks' third straight and knocks them out of Empire 8 playoff contention.
Hartwick's Mark Blazek (Erie, PA/Erie Cathedral Prep) and Kyle Phillips (Ashland, MA/Ashland) scored 48 of the Hawks' 72 points in the contest. Blazek had a team-best 25 and tied a team-high with six rebounds. Phillips hit 11-of-18 shots and added six boards and three blocks.
Martin McCann (Hopewell Junction, NY/Our Lady of Lourdes) and James Mantas (Niskayuna, NY/CBA) each scored eight points and Shane Tanzosh (Warwick, NY/Warwick) pulled down six rebounds.
The Hawks quickly jumped out to a 5-0 lead and tried to slow the pace of the game down early. They methodically built upon their lead throughout the half and led by 11 points, 23-12, with 8:36 remaining on a Blazek jumper. A 9-0 IC spurt in the next two minutes, however, ignited a 24-6 run to close the opening stanza and the Bombers led 36-29 at the half. Blazek led the way for 'Wick with 13 points before intermission.
In the second half, Hartwick's deficit hovered between eight and 10 points for the first five minutes. At the 12:56 mark, McCann drained a three-pointer to cut the lead to five, 51-46, but another 9-0 run put the Bombers back up by 14, 60-46 with under 11 minutes to go. 'Wick made it an seven-point game, 70-63, with five minutes remaining, but Ithaca would outscore the Hawks 9-2 over the next two and a half minutes to put the game away.
Marcus ended up with a game-high 26 points, 24 coming on three-pointers. Chris Cruz-Rivas added 18 points and Sean Rossi netted seven and dished out 10 assists.
The Hawks will host Stevens on Sunday at 4 p.m. The game will serve as the Hartwick senior recognition game, honoring the careers of Phillips, Mantas, Dan DeVantier (Roscoe, NY/Roscoe) and Mike Tracy (Morris, NY/Morris).
