CORTLAND, NY – The Utica College men's basketball team lost its season opener 73-54 at host Cortland State on Tuesday afternoon. Utica (0-1) was led by 16 points and five rebounds from senior
Conor Maisch (Kingston, NY/John A. Coleman).
The Red Dragons (1-0) jumped out to a 14 point lead, 16-2, in the first 7:55 of the contest behind four points each from Lamard Herron and Matt McGowan. Herron led all Cortland scorers with 16 points and five assists on the evening.
The Pioneers picked up their scoring output in the final ten minutes of the first half, but the home team was able to counter throughout the stretch, and Cortland led by 13 points as the halftime horn sounded, 36-23.
Cortland used a 13-4 run in the first 3:48 of the second half to extend its lead to 49-27 after James Morales hit one of his four 3-pointers on the afternoon. Morales finished the day with 12 points, all by way of the three-ball.
The Pioneers managed to cut their deficit to 16 points, 60-44, with 5:47 remaining in the contest after senior point guard
Aaron Nevins (Buffalo, NY/Canisius) made a lay-up, but it proved to be too late as the Red Dragons hung on for the 19 point victory.
Nevins finished the day with 10 points and three rebounds, while classmate
Chris Jeffers (Albany, NY/Bishop Maginn) added nine points, including a 5-of-6 mark from the charity stripe. Ivan Itor led all bench scorers with six points in his first collegiate appearance, while freshman classmates
Dillan Veeder (Canajoharie, NY/Canajoharie) and
Shawn Celestin (Nanuet, NY/Nanuet) added three and two points, respectively, for the Pioneers.
Utica's
Marty Felicia (Phoenix, NY/Phoenix) chipped in with three points and three rebounds, but saw limited action after picking up four fouls.
Griffin Kelly (Watervliet, NY/Watervliet) and
Robert Tutein (Nanuet, NY/Nanuet) combined for five points for Utica.
The Pioneers were 3-of-18 from beyond the three point line on the afternoon as their record fell to 0-1 overall.
Utica returns to action on Friday when they travel to the University of Rochester Tip-Off Tournament to take on New Paltz in early season tournament action. The tip-off is scheduled for 1 p.m.
