NEW PALTZ, N.Y. – The State University of New York at New Paltz men's basketball team fell, 98-72, to SUNY Oneonta in a State University of New York Athletic Conference (SUNYAC) game Tuesday night at the Hawk Center in its third of five straight home contests.
 
Oneonta never trailed in the game, shooting 50.8 percent (31-of-61) from the floor, which included a 59.4 percent (19-of-32) mark in the second half. The Red Dragons also controlled the boards (40-35) and shot 81.8 percent (27-of-33) from the free-throw line.
 
New Paltz drops to 8-10 overall (6-5 SUNYAC) with the loss and is now in a four-way tie for fifth in the conference standings. The Hawks continue their home stand on Friday, Feb. 6, with a 5:30 p.m. game against SUNY Potsdam. Oneonta rises to 9-9 overall (6-5 SUNYAC) with the victory and hosts SUNY Plattsburgh on Friday, Feb. 6, at 5:30 p.m.
 
The Red Dragons hopped out to a 22-7 lead, but an 8-0 Hawk run later on in the first half trimmed the home team's deficit to six. After Oneonta pushed the edge back out to double digits with 4:23 to play in the half, senior guard/forward R.J. Rosa (North Branch, N.Y./Sullivan West) capped off a modest 4-0 New Paltz spurt to pull the Hawks within six (30-24) once again. The two teams battled back and forth before Oneonta opened up a 41-30 advantage heading into the locker rooms.
 
New Paltz went toe-to-toe with Oneonta in the first few possessions of the second half, but the Red Dragons had an answer for each Hawk basket. Oneonta led by as many as 26 points in the final 20 minutes of play, as the Red Dragons kept draining shots from all over the floor.
 
The Hawks were able to score 18 points off 12 turnovers during the contest, and they tallied 15 fast-break points. New Paltz's bench also chipped in with nearly half of the team's scoring output, as the reserves combined for 34 points.
 
Senior guard/forward Taylor Sowah (Bronx, N.Y./Miller Place) led the Hawks with 14 points, while sophomore center Taylor Mulvey (Rotterdam, N.Y./Christian Brothers Academy) added 12 coming off the bench. Rosa finished with five rebounds, four assists and four steals, while sophomore forward Andrew Seniuk (Wantagh, N.Y./MacArthur) nearly posted a double-double with nine points and seven rebounds.
 
For Oneonta, senior guard Zach Mager and sophomore forward Lawrence Coleman tied for the game-high in points with 20 apiece, while junior forward Mikey McElroy and junior guard Jack Dignan scored 16 and 13 points, respectively. Dignan's total came in 25 minutes coming off the bench. Senior guard Frankie Kelly finished with seven assists, six points, five rebounds and two steals, while senior forward Kareem Williams grabbed a game-high eight rebounds.