PLATTSBURGH, N.Y. – Senior guard Willard Anderson Jr. (Buffalo, N.Y. / East) got fouled on a three with 0.03 seconds left in the fourth quarter. Anderson Jr. made his first free throw which tied the game and his second free throw that won the game and gave the Plattsburgh State men's basketball team their fourth straight State University of New York Athletic Conference (SUNYAC) win, 73-72. Anderson Jr. scored 12 points including those clutch free throws and grabbed five rebounds.

Kevin Tabb (Brooklyn, N.Y. / Thomas Jefferson) entered tonight's game at 999 career points as he needed one more point to reach the 1,000-point mark which he got on his first basket at the 17:48 mark. Tabb is the 16th Plattsburgh State men's basketball player to surpass the 1,000-point mark. In addition to surpassing that mark tonight, Tabb led all scorers with 21 points as he grabbed seven rebounds, dished out four assists, and had three steals.

Dylan Trombley was also in double figures as he scored 15 points including a clutch three-pointer that put the Cardinals down by one. Trombley also added four rebounds and four steals. Franklin Infante (East Rockaway, N.Y. / East Rockaway) and Tim Thomas (Manhattan, N.Y. / Commonwealth Academy (Mass.)) contributed to the offensive effort with nine and seven points respectively while Infante added three assists and Thomas eight rebounds. Ankush Malhotra (Long Island, N.Y. / Upper Room Christian School) was on the boards for the Cardinals as he had six rebounds.

For the Golden Eagles, Mekhi Beckett led the team in points with 16. Alex Tavarez and Jevonny Brown were also in double figures as they had 15 and 14 respectively. Caquan Wester led all players in rebounds with 12.

Both teams shot the ball fairly well as the Cardinals shot exactly 40.0% and the Golden Eagles 43.1% but they struggled from the free throw line as they only made 11-18 and shot 61.1% while the Cardinals shot 85.7%, making 18 of 21. The Cardinals lost the rebounding battle 34-44 but won the turnover battle 14-17 as they got 22 points off turnovers compared to the Golden Eagles 13.
Plattsburgh moves to 7-6 overall (4-2 SUNYAC) with another league matchup with Geneseo tomorrow, Jan. 12, at 4 pm. Brockport falls to 7-5 overall (3-3 SUNYAC) as they travel to Potsdam tomorrow for a 4 pm tip-off.  

The first half saw the Cardinals lead the entire way as they extended their lead to as much as 13. Ikechukwu Ezike (Brooklyn, N.Y. / Paul Robeson) started the first half off with a jumper followed by a Wester jumper. The Cardinals then scored six straight points that made the score 8-2 with less than 15 minutes to play. The Golden Eagles responded with six straight points of their own that tied the game at 8. The Cardinals retook the lead at the 12:39 mark on an Infante jumper and held it for the remainder of the half. At the 5:05 mark, the Cardinals saw their biggest lead (13) as Anderson Jr. made a three that made the score 30-17. From the 2:43 mark until the end of the half, the Golden Eagles went on a 9-2 run and made the score 34-29 Cardinals at halftime.

The second half saw the Cardinals down by 15 as they completed the come from behind victory. Anderson Jr. got the half started with a layup followed by a Brown jumper. From the 15:55 mark until the 15:08 mark, the Golden Eagles went on an 8-0 run that cut the Cardinal lead to one before Tabb ended that run with a jumper that made the score 46-43. At the 12:15 mark, the Golden Eagles got their first lead of the second half on a layup from Brown that made the score 47-46. The Cardinals took the lead back momentarily, but Beckett made a three that gave the Golden Eagles back the lead 50-48. At the 9:12 mark, the Golden Eagles extended their lead to double digits on a jumper from Beckett. At the 5:58 mark, the Golden Eagles extended their lead to 15 which was their largest of the game and made the score 67-52. From the 3:26 mark until the 0:27 mark the Cardinals went on a 10-0 run that cut the Golden Eagles lead to three and made the score 69-66.  Beckett made two free throws to which Trombley made two of his own that made the score 71-68. Brown got sent to the line and made one free throw that made the score 72-68. Down by four with 0:20 on the clock, Trombley made a clutch three off a Tabb pass that cut the lead to one. The Cardinals got the ball back after a missed free throw and with less than one second on the clock, Anderson Jr. was fouled on a three that sent him to the line with three free throws and down by one with 0.03 seconds remaining. Anderson Jr. drained the first free throw that tied the game at 72 and drained the second free throw that won the game for the Cardinals as time expired on the Golden Eagles and the Cardinals won 73-72.