MORRISVILLE, NY - The Utica University men's basketball team took down the Morrisville State Mustangs in comeback fashion by a score of 83-71 on Wednesday evening.
Leading the way for the Pioneers was Jordan Cain (Syracuse, NY/West Genesee) who registered a career high 27 points (7-14 FG, 1-6 3PT, 12-14 FT). Dayion Thompson (Beacon, NY/Kimball Union Academy) followed with 24 points (9-16 FG, 2-7 3PT, 4-4 FT), and Ryan McCardle (Hurley, NY/Kingston) continued his momentum with 14 points (5-8 FG, 4-6 3PT). Liam Teague (Guilderland, NY/Guilderland) led the rebounding force with eight rebounds, followed by McCardle, Keyaton Parks (Albany, NY/Green Tech High Charter), and Ben Wittman (Sherrill, NY/Vernon-Verona-Sherrill) who each registered five. Wittman and Cain each dished out a team high three assists. Defensively, Cain led the Pioneers with a team high five steals, while Teague tallied a pair of blocks.
Utica and SUNY Morrisville traded stops early, with Cain and Teague erasing a choppy opening stretch by combining on Utica's first bucket. The Pioneers briefly fell behind 5–2 before Parks, Cain, and Thompson settled in, attacking the paint to fuel a 13–5 surge and a 13–5 Utica lead. A pair of free throws and a jumper from Wittman, plus a transition finish from Thompson kept Utica in front 15–9 and later 20–17 after another Parks layup. From there the half swung toward the Mustangs with a late flurry of triples that would flip the scoreboard. Cain knocked down a three and Parks scored through contact to keep it tight, along with a triple from Thompson, but back-to-back threes from the Mustangs in the final minute sent Utica to the locker room down 37–30.
Morrisville tried to put it away coming out of the break, racing out in transition for a 6–0 burst and stretching the margin to double digits as the Mustangs would make it 62–44. Utica's response was emphatic. Thompson and Cain started the climb with drives to the basket, McCardle splashed a series of threes, and Cain's three-point play trimmed it to 65–54. Another McCardle triple, a Thompson transition three, and Cain layups pulled the Pioneers within single digits and then just two at 71–69 after Thompson converted at the rim and at the line. Teague calmly knocked down three free throws in the final minutes and added a midrange jumper, while Cain kept hammering the paint for layups and trips to the stripe. Utica closed the night on a dominant extended run, stringing together stops and finishing plus-ones at the other end to flip an 18-point second-half deficit into a 12-point victory, outscoring Morrisville down the stretch to win it 83–71.
Utica (3-1, 0-0 Empire 8) opens the 2025-26 home slate on Saturday, November 22 against the Keystone College Giants. Tip off from Miga Court inside the Clark Athletic Center is set for 5pm.
