By Peter Holehan
Assistant SID-SUNY Potsdam
This was the type of effort that SUNY Potsdam men's basketball coach Sherry Dobbs Jr. had been seeking—a collective effort of hustle and grit—as the Bears rolled to a 86-81 victory against SUNY New Paltz to put the punctuation mark on a celebratory Bears Pride night that saw its largest crowd of the season rock Jerry Welsh Gymnasium on Friday night.
Students created a rich school spirit for a pro Bears' environment, with maroon, gray and black clad Potsdam garb as they pumped up the gym with raucous ovations and signs supporting the team.
On the floor, the Bears matched that intensity from the stands as Potsdam raced out to a 19-point lead before it enjoyed a 44-31 halftime lead.
Potsdam crashed the boards with a 29-12 advantage through the opening half and showcased a balancing scoring attack with four players scoring at least double digits in points. The Bears finished the game with a plus 12 margin for a rebounding edge and shot 19 more free throws than the Hawks.
"We've been harping on getting on the offensive glass and to get 20 tonight, that's a pretty good number," said coach Dobbs.
"We did a good job of feeding off the crowd. We talked this week in practice about all five guys playing together and being really good teammates on the floor. That type of togetherness was a factor. There was positive communication with guys just saying to one another that, 'Hey, we need to get this done.' I was proud of the way we did that tonight."
Sophomore guard Joe Estramonte (Greenwich, N.Y. / Greenwich Central) and junior guard/forward Zac Adams (Potsdam, N.Y. / Potsdam) had 17 points and four assists apiece.
Junior guard Tom Graf (Elbridge, N.Y. / Jordan-Elbridge) knocked down three 3-pointers—all in the first half—and senior captain Rob Duquette (Peru, N.Y. / Peru) had 15 points, nine rebounds and two blocks.
Senior Brandon Williams (Brooklyn, N.Y. / Boys & Girls) pulled down 11 rebounds and picked up a steal and a block. Reserve Conor Engle (Auburn, N.Y . / Auburn) provided a huge spark off the bench with six points, nine rebounds and a block in 17 minutes.
"It's definitely a good feeling after the way our season has gone," Duquette said. "We hope to build off our success tonight. We knew it was Bears pride night. It was motivating for us to be home for the first time in about a month and have the fans get behind us. We had good execution and focus. Everything our coach told us to do, we did. We showed great intensity and we showed them that we were not going to be an easy team to play against—we wanted it."
And, perhaps most importantly, Potsdam (3-14 overall, 1-9 SUNYAC) did not beat themselves as it committed just five turnovers in the first half and nine in the game.
"Conor is a really good help defender and that's a valuable skill," said coach Dobbs. "I was really impressed with how he played tonight. We needed to come out with a lot of intensity and be ready to play. When you're able to get a nice lead, it changes how you play the game."
Sophomore guard Keegan Donovan scored a team-high 27 points for the Hawks (6-12 overall, 3-8 SUNYAC).
Potsdam (3-3 at home) returns to action on Saturday against SUNY Oneonta.
Tip-off is scheduled for approximately 4 p.m. from Jerry Welsh Gymnasium.