PITTSFORD, N.Y. – The St. John Fisher University men's basketball team hosted Houghton University in the first-round of the Empire 8 Championship on Tuesday. The Cardinals handled their business at home, defeating the Highlanders, 79-65
 
The Cardinals claimed an early advantage after Matt Lettko and Connor Recore scored layups in the opening 90 seconds. The team continued to push their lead and an 8-0 run was capped off by an emphatic dunk by Brendan McRoy, making the score 14-5 after five minutes. The Highlanders knocked down shots to stay within striking distance, but a three-pointer by Akinlana Popoola and three-point play by McRoy extended the lead back to 18 points with four minutes to play. As the horn sounded for half-time, Fisher led the way 43-25.
 
The Cardinals maintained a big lead for the opening seven minutes of the second-half, but the Highlanders began to chip away cutting their deficit to 13 points with 12 minutes to play. Layups by Connor Williams and Jack Foley stopped the run and put Fisher back on top 67-46, but Houghton did not give up. A couple of runs down the stretch saw the Cardinal lead shrink to 12 points, but a strong defense by Fisher helped keep the Highlanders scoreless in the final three minutes of the game.
 
Daniel Cook led the way with a 16 points, 11 rebound double-double and he added four assists, two blocks and two steals. McRoy added 11 points, six rebounds and six assists in his 30 minutes of action. Lettko and Williams both added double-digit scoring, tallying 11 and 10 points respectively.
 
The Cardinals will travel to cross-town rival, Nazareth University on Thursday, Feb. 22 for a semi-final matchup. Tip-off is set for 7:30 p.m.

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