ONEONTA, NY – Close, but not quite. The Hartwick men's basketball team led visiting Morrisville by one with 90 seconds to go on Monday night, but could not seal the deal, eventually losing 56-54 to their Lambros Arena guests. The Hawks will remain in search of their first win of the season when the calendar turns to 2022, as they fall to 0-8. The Mustangs improved to 3-6 on the season with the victory.
Over the initial eight-plus minutes of the contest, the teams traded mini-runs. 'Wick grabbed an 8-4 lead on Steven White's (Hingham, MA/Hingham) three with 2:29 gone by, only for the Mustangs to score eight of the next 10 for a 16-10 advantage just 5:45 in. The Hawks had the next six points (including a Liam Drennan (Oyster Bay, NY/Chaminade) trey), knotting the game at 16-all with 11:51 on the clock. Morrisville claimed the next 5:45, as five different Mustangs scored over a 12-0 run for a 28-16 lead with 6:06 remaining in the half. 'Wick immediately returned the favor, however, creating a 12-0 stretch of their own for a 28-28 game at the break.
Coming out of the locker room, Morrisville's Brison Hall and Bryce Arroyo assisted on each other's buckets to take a 33-28 lead in the first minute of the third. The Mustang lead continued to grow thanks to those two, as they scored eight more points over the first four minutes for a 41-30 advantage. Hall was off the mark on the final score of the run, unable to finish a fast-break lay-up, but that was all he missed throughout the stretch; Arroyo grabbed the offensive rebound and put back a lay-up anyway, negating Hall's slight miscue. Similar to the end of the first half, though, Hartwick immediately fired back. They scored the next 11 points to knot the game at 41 with 11:19 on the clock, with a Nick Eiler (Highland Mills, NY/Saddle River Day) fast-break dunk off a Cooper Francis (Lynbrook, NY/Chaminade) pass over the top of the Morrisville defense providing an emphatic exclamation point on the 11-0 run.
Once again, the Mustangs again answered, eventually finding themselves leading by nine at 51-42 with 5:20 remaining. And once again, the Hawks showed no quit. You could almost think you were seeing double a few minutes later, as Kevin Felasco (Liverpool, NY/Cicero-North Syracuse) sank two threes over his defender from nearly the same spot on the wing over the course of 1:12, bringing the Hawks to within two points at 53-51 with 2:38 on the clock. The next offensive possession proved just as fruitful for 'Wick, as a beautiful Anthony Girard (Chestertown, NY/North Warren Central) dish for a White lay-up tied the game; White was fouled on the shot and sank the ensuing free throw, giving the Hawks a 54-53 lead with 1:30 to go. Morrisville immediately answered, however, as Hall sank a jumper along the baseline to retake a 55-54 advantage with 1:14 on the scoreboard. Hartwick had a couple of possessions end empty over the next minute-plus, and after Hall drained one-of-two from the charity stripe with seconds to go, the Hawks found themselves with one last shot coming out of a timeout in the backcourt. Drennan's inbound pass was sent to White, who created a bit of space a few steps before the half-court line and heaved one towards the hoop. He was not able to watch it fall through, however, as after his try fell short, people headed for the exits. 'Wick's first win of the season would have to wait for another day.
On the evening, Francis was 'Wick's top performer, with a career-high 13 rebounds (the most of any Hartwick player this season) and 10 points. White and Felasco each contributed with 12 points, and Drennan had seven points, eight boards, two steals, and two assists.
Underwhelming shooting was the name of the game, as the teams combined for just 110 points on 37.5% from the field. Hartwick was 19-of-50 (38.0%), while Morrisville shot 23-of-62 (37.1%), and 'Wick was 8-of-23 from deep (34.8%) compared to the Mustangs' 5-of-20 (25.0%). Rebounds were dead even at 38-apiece, although an 11-6 advantage on the offensive glass led to an 11-2 lead in second chance points for the visitors. Morrisville also had a significant lead in paint points, at 30-20, as well as turned the ball over just eight times to 'Wick's 14.
The Hawks play next on Tuesday, January 4, 2022, when they open up Empire 8 Conference play against Russell Sage. Opening tip is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. in Lambros Arena.
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