HAMILTON, NY – The Utica College men's basketball team outscored Division I Colgate University 45-39 in the second half but could not overcome a 28 point halftime deficit in a 90-68 loss at Colgate's Cotterell Court on Thursday night.  Utica's Rob Tutein led the Pioneers with 20 points and he also added three assists and three rebounds. 

Utica freshman Jonathan Wilson (Rochester, NY/Greece Arcadia) added ten points, while sophomore Ivan Iton (Ossining, NY/Ossining) had an impressive night as he netted 15 points and snagged 13 rebounds to go along with three steals. 

The last time the Pioneers squared off against Colgate was back in the 1984-85 season when Utica was still a Division I basketball program.  In that last meeting, the Pioneers took home a 51-43 victory in the only recorded regular season contest between the two programs.

The Raiders jumped out to an 11 point lead, 19-8, in the first 7:18 of the contest after Sean O'Brien drilled a 3-pointer for the home team.  UC cut its deficit to eight points midway through the half, but the Raiders answered with a 32-12 run to take a convincing 51-23 lead as the halftime horn sounded.

The Pioneers cut their deficit to below 20 points on two occasions in the second half, but they could not mount the full comeback as Colgate earned the 22 point win.

The contest counts towards one of the Pioneers maximum 25 regular season contests, but would not be considered for NCAA regional rankings and postseason purposes because it is considered an out of division contest.

Utica's Seamus McHugh (Latham, NY/Shaker) was 2-for-5 from downtown and posted eight points while Mike Cannizzo (Mechanicville, NY/Mechanicville) came off the bench and netted seven points.

Jordan Robertson tallied a game-high 21 points for the Raiders, who were coming off a loss at national-power Syracuse University on Tuesday night. Jordan Swopshire added 14 points and seven rebounds, while Austin Tillotson recorded 10 points and eight assists.

The Pioneers (2-5) return home in 20 days to take on Medaille College on Wednesday, December 30^th. Tip-off is set for 2 p.m.