MARCY, NY – Ivan Iton (Ossining, NY/Ossining)'s 25 point effort was not enough as host SUNY Polytechnic scored 21 points off of 14 Utica turnovers and topped the Pioneers 81-71 Tuesday night in non-conference action.

Utica's record moved to 1-2 overall and the Pioneers will return to the hardwood on Monday after a short Thanksgiving break as they host Cazenovia College at the Clark Athletic Center at 6 p.m.

Sophomore Jake Kulakowski (Brewerton, NY/Central Square) netted 15 points and added five rebounds, while senior Carl Taylor (East Brunswick, NJ/East Brunswick) added 11 points and seven rounds for the Pioneers.

Redell Freeman led SUNY Poly (2-1) with a game-high 29 points and eight assists. Freeman shot 9-of-14 from the floor and also knocked down five of the Wilcats' 10 3-pointers on the afternoon. Tyler Taverne chipped in with 12 points for the home team.

The contest featured three ties and five lead changes and the Wildcats pushed to their largest lead of the game (13 points) late in the second half.

UC held a three point lead, 27-24, with 4:57 to go in the first half of play until the Wildcats used a 12-2 run to close out the half as they took a seven point lead, 36-29, into the locker room after 20 minutes of action.

Poly extended its lead to 11 points, 42-31, early in the second half after a good 3-point bucket by Tymeek Mackie at the 17:49 marker. Utica then used a 10-2 run in the next 3:34 of the contest to cut its deficit to just three points, 44-41, with 14:15 to go following a layup by Kulakowski.

The score remained close and the Pioneers brought it to within just one point, 56-55, after a layup by senior point guard Bennito Ayarza (Brooklyn, NY/Cayuga Community College) with 8:14 left in regulation. However, the home team went on a 15-3 run in a span of 4:23 down the stretch to push its lead back to 13 points with 2:27 left in the contest.

Poly held a double digit lead for the remainder of the game and eventually earned the 10 point victory as the final horn sounded.

Tyler Jollie (Marlboro, NY/Marlboro) netted six points on the afternoon while Bennito Ayarza (Brooklyn, NY/Cayuga Community College) finished with four points and two assists for UC.

Utica shot 46.3% from the floor and 46.2% from behind the arc in the contest.