Utica, NY - The Utica College men's basketball team trailed SUNY Poly through most of the game Tuesday night, but made a late comeback going down the stretch that would surge the team to its third win of the season by a score of 85-82.

Junior guard Kobe Lufkin (Argyle, NY/Argyle) posted his second-consecutive 20-plus point game, as he finished the contest with a team-high 22 points while adding five rebounds in the process.

The comeback push was ignited at the 11:22 mark, when sophomore forward Jackson Sullivan (Fairport, NY/Fairport) netted a big 3-pointer to draw the Pioneers within five by a score of 59-54. SUNY Poly answered with a free throw to increase its lead to 60-54, but a Hunter Remley (Cranford, NJ/Cranford) 3-pointer and two Lufkin free throws cut the deficit to only one (60-59) with 10:49 left to play.

The two teams traded baskets for the next nine minutes, but the Pioneers were finally able to create some separation with 47 seconds left to go by way of back-to-back 3s from freshman forward Thomas Morreale (Whitesboro, NY/Whitesboro) and Remley in addition to a Kimedrick Murphy (Hudson, NY/Hudson) layup and free throw. This gave UC its largest lead of the game, 82-76. The Wildcats responded time and time again in the final minute, but the Pioneers always answered back to secure the victory.

Freshman guard Brett Talbert (Deer Park, NY/Knox School) had a breakout performance, posting a season-high 17 points in the winning effort. Remley finished right behind Talbert with 16 points on the afternoon.

Junior center Kimedrick Murphy (Hudson, NY/Hudson) continued to dominate the post, as he finished with a game-high four blocks and a team-high seven rebounds while netting nine points as well. Morreale matched Murphy with seven rebounds and added seven points.

The Pioneers advance to 3-1 with this win, and they will have a short break for Thanksgiving before heading to face Neumann University in the opening round of the University of Rochester tournament Saturday at 7 p.m.