ALBANY, NY - The Utica University men's basketball team defeated the Russell Sage College Gators on the road by a score of 81-71 on Saturday afternoon. 

Leading the way for the Pioneers was Dayion Thompson (Beacon, NY/Kimball Union Academy) with 25 points, and was perfect in his attempts from the free throw line. Two other Pioneers finished with double figures in scoring, Damien Call (Rome, NY/Rome Free Academy) with 18 and Liam Teague (Guilderland, NY/Guilderland) with 10. Call added eight boards and four assists to his stat line, while Teague added five rebounds and two blocks to his. Ben Whitman was a stout defender for the Pioneers, hauling in 10 rebounds with two blocks and a steal, while Hagen Foley (Albany, NY/Christian Brothers Academy) added six rebounds, four assists, and two steals in the contest. 

The Pioneers would push the pace early, getting out to a six point lead with less than five minutes gone in the opening frame. Sage would then be able to close the gap on three back to back buckets to knot the game at 18 with over 13 minutes remaining. From there, it would be the Gators that would find the momentum, gaining a five point lead that would be erased by buckets from Call and Teague to put the Pioneers back up by one with seven and a half minutes remaining. For the remainder of the frame, both teams would push the pace again with neither side able to get out by more than three. It would be the Gators that would head to the locker room with the edge at 36-34. 

Coming out of the break, the Gators would find the momentum getting out by seven early. Sage would be able to keep the Pioneer offense at bay, as the Pioneers would be unable to overcome the deficit for almost half of the second stanza. It would be a layup from Whitman that would break the Pioneers through with just under 11 minutes remaining in the frame. From there, the Pioneers would get ahead by three, but would knot again at 53 after the Gators would drive down the court and take a shot from deep. There would be four lead changes in the next four minutes, but a jumper in the paint from Thompson would spark the Pioneer offense late. Baskets from Thompson, Jordan Cain (Syracuse, NY/West Genesee), and Foley would put the Pioneers ahead by 10 with under a minute remaining in the final frame. A trio of free throws from Thompson would put the Pioneers ahead by 13. With the final seconds ticking off the clock, Sage would nail a three point basket but it would not be enough as the Pioneers would walk away with the victory, 81-71. 

Utica (11-6, 5-3 Empire 8) returns home to take on cross town rival and Empire 8 Conference newcomer SUNY Poly at home on Tuesday, January 28. Tip off from Miga Court inside the Clark Athletic Center is set for 7:30pm.