BUFFALO, N.Y. - SUNY Geneseo junior forward Gordon Lyons scored a game-high 24 points, including the game-winning put-back as time expired, to go along with nine rebounds as the Knights escaped with a 76-74 victory at Medaille, Monday night.
Senior forward Jordan Jones compiled 13 points, including 9-of-9 free throws, while juniorJames McKenna totaled 16 points, including 8-of-8 attempts from the free throw line, as Geneseo finished 24-of-26 from the charity stripe to improve to 2-0 to start the season.
"This was a great team win for us tonight," said head coach Steve Minton. "I learned a lot about our team, not only when things were going well, but when Medaille went on their run and the only people in the gym that thought we could still win were on our bench. We weathered all the momentum swings and buckled down at the end. They had nine offensive rebounds at halftime but only finished with 11. We also did a great job from the free throw line which obviously was huge.
Lyons led all scorers with 14 points at halftime as the Knights held a 36-34 edge following a back-and-forth first 20 minutes.
Geneseo opened the second half on a 20-10 run capped by a McKenna put-back to take a 56-44 lead with 12:28 on the clock. Medaille would answer with a 13-0 spurt of its own to take a one-point lead, 57-56, with 8:11 left in the half. A pair of Jones free throw halted the run, but a Medaille three-pointer put the Mavericks back up, 60-58, with 7:59 on the clock.
A three-pointer by junior Andy Drescher gave the Knights a 64-62 edge with 4:24 to play, but Medaille looked to take control with a 7-2 run to lead 69-66, with 2:57 remaining. McKenna would sink a pair of free throws before a Maverick turnover led to a McKenna put-back that gave the Knights a 70-69 lead with 1:39 left. Medaille would answer right back with a three pointer to go back up, 72-70 with 1:21 on the clock.
Lyons would get free for a layup to tie the game, 72-72, with 49 seconds left in the game. Following a timeout, the Mavericks would miss a layup and foul McKenna on the ensuing defensive rebound. McKenna would put the Knights back up with two free throws, but Medaille would tie the game back up on a layup with 17 seconds left in regulation.
On the final possession of regulation, senior guard Thomas Decker drove down the lane and put up a short-range floater that bounced off the back of the rim. Lyons was there to grab the rebound and put back the winning layup as time expired.
Geneseo returns to action on Wednesday, Dec. 4, hosting a first-round game of the Wendy's College Classic against an TBD opponent at 8:00 p.m.