UTICA, NY – The Utica College men's basketball team had its two game win streak snapped Saturday against visiting Nazareth College, 67-61, in Empire 8 play at the Clark Athletic Center.
 
The Pioneers, now 6-10 overall, outscored the Golden Flyers 34-25 in the second half but couldn't overcome the 15-point, first half deficit as they dropped to 2-5 in the league.  UC returns to the court Tuesday when it heads to Oneonta, NY to face E8 rival Hartwick College (8 p.m.).
 
The teams battled over the first 10 minutes of play as the stretch featured seven lead changes before Naz began to pull away with nine minutes left in the first half. The Golden Flyers worked a 23-9 run, starting at 9:38, and held a 15 point lead, 42-27, headed into the intermission.
 
The visitors moved to a 17 point lead to open up the second half before UC put together a push to get back into the contest.  The Pioneers managed a 21-8 strut over the next eight minutes to pull within four points, 52-48, with 8:07 remaining in regulation, however they fell short of the comeback as Naz went on to secure the six point victory.
 
Ten different Pioneers scored in the loss and they were led by senior Conor Maisch (Kingston, NY/John A. Coleman) who tallied a team-high 15 points, nine rebounds and six assists in 29 minutes of action.  Senior Chris Jeffers (Albany, NY/Bishop Maginn) added 12 points and four boards while Robert Tutein (Nanuet, NY/Nanuet) chipped in with 10 points in the defeat.
 
Nazareth's Mitch Ford led the charge for the visitors with an impressive 38 point, 14 rebound performance to give the Golden Flyers their first win in league play.
 
Naz improves to 5-9 on the season while garnering its first win in E8 play to improve to 1-4.  The Golden Flyers return to the hardwood Tuesday as they welcome Elmira to the Kidera Gymnasium (8 p.m.)