ONEONTA, NY – Hartwick earned a hard-fought 108-98 victory over visiting Elmira (3-10, 1-3 E8) as the Hawks won for the second straight time and third time in four games Saturday at Lambros Arena. The 108 points are a season-high for 'Wick and the team equaled a season-best with 19 three-point baskets. Five different Hawks were in double figures, led by Tommy Kelly's (Niskayuna, NY/Niskayuna) career-high 27 points.
With the victory, the Hawks up their overall record to 7-9. They are now 3-4 in the Empire 8 and 3-1 in their last four contests.
The Soaring Eagles entered the game hoping to wear down the Hawks with a relentless five-at-a-time substitution game plan, but it was no match for Hartwick's tireless grit as they continually handled the Soaring Eagles' pressure and knocked down shots. For the game, the Hawks shot 49% (34-for-70) from the floor and 54% (19-for-35) from three. They also handled their business from the free-throw line, connecting on 21-of-25 attempts (84%).
The Hawks would start the first half on a blistering pace from the outside as they made 12 of their first 16 shots from downtown (75%) through the first 15 minutes. The Soaring Eagles kept pace as they hit 9-of-16 (56%) in the same time frame to stay close to the Hawks, who led 53-45. Hartwick would go without a field goal over the final four and a half minutes of the half while the Soaring Eagles finished on a 14-4 run to grab a 59-57 lead at halftime. The two teams would combine for 24 threes and 57% shooting from beyond the arc in the half. The lead would change hands a total of 11 times in the half.
Kelly had 15 points at the break to lead all scorers. Pat Garey (Johnson City, NY/Johnson City) added 12 and Brandon LaForest (Cohoes, NY/Cohoes) had 10.
The lead changed hands another three times to start the second half. The final time, on a basket from Justin Carruthers (Greenwich, NY/Greenwich), would give the Hawks the lead to stay at 63-62. Hartwick held a narrow 83-80 advantage with 9:54 remaining but both teams went cold and scoreless for the next three minutes and 20 seconds. A Bobby Connors' (Rockville Centre, NY/Chaminade) layup ended the drought and it triggered a 7-0 run to put the Hawks up 10. The Hawks hit the century mark at 1:57, opening up their biggest lead of the night, 100-87, and eight points would be as close as the Soaring Eagles would get.
The Hawks finished with a 52-49 edge on the glass. They would hold EC to only 28% shooting in the second half and 19% from three after a strong EC first half.
Kelly made 7-of-13 shots, a trio of threes, and he was perfect from the line at 10-for-10. LaForest flirted with a triple-double with 17 points, a game-high 11 assists, and seven rebounds. Garey finished with 18 points, seven assists, six three-pointers, and six boards.
Kyle Bradshaw (Tinton Falls, NJ/Brookdale CC) ended the night with 16 points. He tied for a game-high with eight rebounds to go along with four triples. Sam Hanley (Cranston, RI/Cranston East) scored 14 points with three treys. Haskell had six points and he tied Bradshaw with eight boards. Connors chipped in five points and six rebounds with Carruthers adding five points and three rebounds.
Elmira had six players in double figures. Shawn Backus led the way with 22 points. Jeremy Every added 17.
The Hawks' game Saturday against St. John Fisher has been postponed due to Winter Storm Harper. Their next game will now take place at Utica College on Tuesday, January 22 at 7:30 p.m.
Make sure to catch the latest news on all your favorite Hartwick Hawks teams by following @HawkTalk on Twitter, @hartwickhawks on Instagram, and by liking 'Hartwick Hawks' on Facebook.