ONEONTA, NY – Junior Chris Ryder (Port Washington, NY/Port Washington) scored 21 of his game-high 29 points in the first half to guide Hartwick's men's basketball team past Stevens on Tuesday night at Lambros Arena in a thriller, 82-78. With the win, which is the team's fourth in a row, the Hawks improve to 6-2 in the Empire 8 and are now tied for first place with Ithaca and St. John Fisher.
In a see-saw game throughout the night that saw 19 lead changes, the Hawks finally gained the upper hand with less than four minutes to play. The Ducks took a 74-70 lead with five minutes left, but a three-pointer from Anthony Keane (Staten Island, NY/Monsignor Farrell) and a layup from Mark Blazek (Erie, PA/Erie Cathedral Prep) gave Hartwick a 75-74 edge with 3:51 remaining.
Andres Carpio (Beacon, NY/Lock Haven Univ.) tacked on a free throw in between two Hartwick defensive stops before Ryder added to the lead with two from the charity stripe for a 78-74 edge with 59 second to go. A layup from Stevens' Bryan Franklin made it 78-76, but Blazek knocked down another pair from the line for an 80-76 advantage with 26 ticks on the clock.
Sheldon Jones then converted the final points of his 20-point night on a layup with 14.5 seconds to play only to have Ryder drain two more from the line with 11.2 seconds left for the final 82-78 margin. Stevens had two more shots from beyond the arc that wouldn't fall and the red-hot Hawks emerged with another victory.
Ryder hit 10-of-16 shots from the field, including 3-of-5 from three-point range and 6-for-6 from the line. He also added a team-high seven rebounds. Ryder's 29 points tied a career-high set last Friday against Elmira. He has 76 points in the Hawks' last three wins.
Blazek ended the night with 18 points and five assists, and Jared Suderley (Newport, NY/West Canada Valley) added 13 points. Martin McCann (Hopewell Junction, NY/Lourdes), who leads the E8 in three-point percentage, went 4-of-6 from three-point land for 12 points. Christian Laputka (Freeland, PA/Hazleton Area) distributed a game-high six assists.
In the first half of play, both teams combined for 88 points and 10 three-pointers as the Ducks held a slight 45-43 edge at the break. Stevens'' largest lead was eight points midway through the opening session.
Early in the second half, the Hawks trailed by three, 46-43, but a 19-8 run gave them their biggest advantage of the night, 62-54, with 11:52 to play. The Ducks got the next eight points to tie it, and the final nine and a half minutes was back and forth. Neither team led by more than four points, and the lead changed eight times the rest of the way.
The Hawks shot 54% from the floor and 42% from three-point range. The Ducks held a 40-24 edge in points in the paint and out-rebounded the Hawks 40-28. The visitors shot 44% as a team but made only 28% from beyond the arc.
Jones led the Ducks in scoring. Simon Smith contributed 13 points and a game-best 16 boards. Russ Thompson scored 14 points and Mike Cultri added 10.
The Hawks are off until Friday, February 4th when they travel to Rochester for a rematch with St. John Fisher.