CORTLAND, N.Y. – Senior Jesse Winter scored eight of team-high 19 points in overtime and also led Cortland with eight assists as the Red Dragons outlasted Brockport, 85-75, after giving up a 19-point second-half lead.
With its seventh straight win, Cortland improved to 15-3 overall and moved into first place in the SUNYAC standings at 9-2. Geneseo lost Tuesday at Oswego and is now 10-3 in the conference for a slightly lower winning percentage than the Red Dragons.
Brockport tied the game at the buzzer in regulation when Brandon Caruthers hit a three-pointer while being tripled-teamed beyond the top of the arc. Cortland, however, made 16-of-20 free throws in the extra session – including 8-of-10 accuracy by Winter – and outscored the Golden Eagles in the overtime, 21-11.
Winter finished the game 13-of-16 from the foul line. Senior Harrison Hefele registered 18 points, including 4-of-5 three-point shooting, and along with eight rebounds and four assists. Junior Kevin McMahon (Hoosick Falls) scored 16 points and pulled down a career-high 17 rebounds and senior Jeremy Smith scored 16 points.
John Ivy led Brockport (12-8, 7-6 SUNYAC) with 27 points and eight rebounds. He made 5-of-9 three-pointers and also recorded three steals. Caruthers finished with 24 points and four steals and Bobby Bell scored nine points.
Cortland led 36-20 at halftime and 41-22 early in the second half. Brockport outscored the Red Dragons 29-13 over an 11-minute stretch and trailed only 54-51 after a Derek Klein layup with 7:29 remaining. Cortland pushed its lead to nine at 60-51 with 3:12 left and still held an eight-point edge at 62-54 on a Hefele layup with 2:36 remaining.
Brockport scored the next seven points on a Matt Lee three-pointer, a Caruthers layup and a Bell layup, the last of which came with 54 seconds left. Bell was fouled, but missed the free throw and the Golden Eagles trailed by one. In a wild sequence, Cortland turned the ball over with 21 seconds left and Brockport turned the ball back over with 17 seconds left. Cortland, however, stepped out of bounds just moments later and Brockport had the ball back with 15 seconds remaining.
Following a timeout, Brockport's Ivy was called for a travel on an attempted drive to the basket with eight seconds left. Cortland sophomore Lamard Herron hit two foul shots with just under six seconds left to give the Red Dragons a 64-61 lead, but Caruthers swished the buzzer-beating trey to force overtime.
Brockport took a 66-65 lead – its first lead since early in the first half – on a Caruthers layup 21 seconds into overtime. Cortland, however, scored the next 10 points on a McMahon free throw, a Smith three-pointer, four Winter free throws and a Hefele layup to take a nine-point lead with 2:25 left. Brockport drew no closer than six from that point.
Cortland will travel to Fredonia on Friday, Feb. 1, at 8 p.m.