BUFFALO, N.Y. – Men's basketball teams that play in the State University of New York Athletic Conference might want to keep an eye on Eli Bryant in the final seconds of a half. Three out of the last four frames, the sophomore has made a basket in the final five seconds. On Friday night at Buffalo State, Bryant connected on the biggest shot of the season thus far for the Plattsburgh State men's basketball team: a three-pointer with five seconds left in the game that gave the team a thrilling 94-92 victory over the Bengals.
 
After trailing nearly the entire game, the Cardinals found their groove with just less than six minutes remaining in the game, tying the contest. They then kept the momentum going, and surged to a six-point lead with 1:15 left.
 
Plattsburgh State watched in disarray however, as the Bengals stormed back quickly, turning their deficit into a one-point lead with 24 seconds left.
 
Holding for the last shot, Bryant waited until Xavier Thomas set a pick with 10 seconds left to make his move. After dribbling around Thomas' screen, Bryant gave little thought before stepping back and trying his luck from four feet beyond the three-point line at the top of the key. The shot went through, sending the Cardinals' bench into a frenzy.
 
Buffalo State would get the ball past half court, but Nico McLean's desperation triple attempt came up short, and the Cardinals shocked the Bengals for the second time in three weeks.
 
Plattsburgh State held a lead for just 21 seconds in the first half despite shooting better than Buffalo State in field goal percentage, three-point percentage, and free throw percentage.
 
The Cardinals turned the ball 12 times in the opening stanza and allowed the Bengals to grab 13 offensive rebounds. The second chance opportunities looked as though they would be too much for Plattsburgh State to overcome, as the 22 allowed for the game were a season-high for the opposition.
 
Bryant foreshadowed his heroics in the second with a step-back jumper that rang in with just two seconds left in the first. That pulled the Cardinals to within five points at the break, 47-42.
 
The two teams traded buckets in the early going of the second, until McLean converted on back-to-back layups nearly five minutes in, which upped the home team's lead to 10 points.
 
Senior Kyle Richardson would then jump start an 11-0 run with six straight points, and with 11:24 remaining, Plattsburgh State grabbed its first lead since that brief stint in the first. After a quiet opening half, the Baldwin, N.Y., native exploded with 20 points in the final 20 minutes, and finished with a game-high 24.
 
The Cardinals shot at least 50-percent from the field for the second consecutive game, and fifth time this season, going 37-of-70 (52.9-percent).
 
Bryant finished with 22 points on 10-of-14 (71.4-percent) shooting. Freshman Jonathan Patron posted 14 points and eight rebounds, while senior Edward Correa notched 10 points and eight boards.
 
Plattsburgh State improves to 14-3 on the year and is 9-1 in the SUNYAC, maintaining its two-game lead in the conference. Buffalo State falls to 11-7 overall and 5-6 in the SUNYAC.
 
Looking to keep the momentum going, the Cardinals will head to Fredonia to take on the Blue Devils on Saturday afternoon. Tip-off is scheduled for 4 p.m.