Rochester, NY - The Utica College men's basketball team opened its season on Friday against The College of New Jersey, in round one of the Chuck Resler Tournament.
Joe Stortini (Rhinebeck, NY/RIT) lifted the Pioneers to a 1-0 start, scoring a career-high 23 points in the 76-72 victory over TCNJ.
The first half was close throughout as the game was tied seven times and there were five lead changes. In a span of just 2:52 the Pioneers went on a 13-2 run, giving them a 24-16 lead with 11:16 on the clock. TCNJ answered back with a 15-2 run of its own in order to take the lead at 35-33 with less than five minutes remaining in the half. Despite 17 first half points for
Joe Stortini (Rhinebeck, NY/RIT) (7-for-11 FG, 2-for-3 3pt), UC entered the halftime break trailing 41-39.
After a back and forth start to the second half, the Pioneers surged for a 12-0 run in 6:51 to take a 59-50 lead with under ten minutes remaining in regulation. Back to back three point shots from TCNJ's Randy Walko cut UC's lead down to just four points with 4:05 on the clock. With just 1:23 left in the contest,
Tyler Jollie (Marlboro, NY/Marlboro) nailed a clutch shot from behind the 3-point arc to give the team a 75-69 lead. Utica held off its opponent and started the season off 1-0 for the first time since 2013.
Joe Stortini (Rhinebeck, NY/RIT) made his first start as a Pioneer count, finishing with a career-high 23 points on 9-for-16 shooting.
Tyler Jollie (Marlboro, NY/Marlboro) provided significant production off the bench for UC wth 14 points, going 4-for-5 from 3-point territory. Reigning Empire 8 Defensive Player of the Year,
Ivan Iton (Ossining, NY/Ossining) tallied a full stat line of eight points, ten rebounds, three steals, and three blocks.
Freshman
Shawn Gashi (Central Square, NY/Bishop Grimes) finished with seven points and five assists, while classmate
Kobe Lufkin (Argyle, NY/Argyle) added nine points (3-for-3 3pt) in their collegiate career debuts.
TCNJ had three players reach double-digits in the loss, as the team drops to 0-1. Randy Walko led the team with 22 points and six rebounds, shooting 8-for-15 from the floor. Eric Murdock Jr. shot 8-for-11 from the free throw line, on his way to tallying 15 points and five assists. Elias Bermudez added ten points, while teammate Ryan Jenson led the team with nine rebounds.
The Pioneers out-rebounded their opponent 45-32 in the win. UC's bench played great in the game, finishing with 35 points and outscoring TCNJ's bench by 17. The team shot the ball well throughout the competition, accumulating a field goal percentage of 49.1% and 3-point percentage of 50%.
Utica will be playing in the championship game of the Chuck Resler Tournament, hosted by the University of Rochester, on Saturday. The team will face the winner of today's matchup between the U of R and Bard College. The championship game is scheduled to tip-off at 8 p.m.
