PITTSFORD, N.Y. – The State University of New York at New Paltz men's basketball team (5-5) pushed its overall record back to .500, as the Hawks handed St. John Fisher College (7-4) a 64-49 setback on Tuesday afternoon at Bobby Wanzer Court in non-conference action. New Paltz ended the Cardinals' five-game winning streak and also dealt them their first home loss of the 2011-12 season.

The Hawks showed no signs of rust after a three-week layoff, as they led for almost the entirety of the contest, which was the first of the 2012 calendar year for both teams.

Senior guard/forward Harris Wichard (Merrick, N.Y./Bellmore JFK) led the New Paltz offense with a game-high 18 points off 8-of-16 shooting from the field and completed the double-double with a team-high 11 boards—all of which came on the defensive glass. Junior forward Matt Devine (Manalapan, N.J./Freehold Township) and junior guard Nick Taldi (Merrick, N.Y./Bellmore JFK) joined Wichard in double figures with 12 and 10 points, respectively. Taldi registered the game-high in assists with three, while freshman forward/center Alan Siergiej (Staten Island, N.Y./St. Joseph by-the-Sea) tied his career-high in blocks with a game-high of three.

St. John Fisher was paced on the offensive end of the floor by Jordan Gettings, who dropped in 12 points in 29 minutes of action. Jason Norsen grabbed a game-high 12 rebounds and chipped in eight points, while Justin Plata and Norsen boasted two blocks apiece.

New Paltz was buoyed by the fact that the offense took care of the ball, as the Hawks committed a season-low nine turnovers. That, coupled with a 45.6 percent (26-of-57) performance from the field, sunk the Cardinals, who were also outrebounded by a 43-41 margin in favor of the Hawks.

St. John Fisher won the opening tip, and Gettings put the Cardinals on the board on their first possession. Taldi answered with a made jumper less than a minute later, and the Cardinals never led from that point forward. New Paltz continued to build momentum, and an old fashioned three-point play by Devine at 11:07 of the first half gave the Hawks an 11-point edge at 19-8. St. John Fisher chipped away at New Paltz's advantage over the next seven minutes, and Plata made it a six-point game with a made three-pointer at 3:57 of the first half. The Hawks scored twice in the final 41 seconds of the first stanza and entered the locker room with a 30-20 lead.

After junior guard Shalik Jenkins (Brooklyn, N.Y./Boys and Girls) put New Paltz out in front 36-22, St. John Fisher went on an 8-0 run, which was capped by a made free-throw shot by Plata at 13:24 of the second half. That run wound up being the Cardinals' last real hope of coming within striking distance of the Hawks, as New Paltz delivered the knockout punch by means of a 13-0 spurt, during which four different players scored. The Hawks' largest lead of the afternoon (23) occurred twice, with Siergiej converting on a layup at 4:46 of the second half and Wichard connecting on a jumper at 3:59 of the second half.

New Paltz is idle for a week until it resumes State University of New York Athletic Conference (SUNYAC) play on Tuesday, Jan. 10, as it takes on SUNY Potsdam at the Hawk Center at 6 p.m.