2008 Woodie Awards
Men's basketball suffers second loss in a row
Ryan Hayner
Issue date: 12/7/07 Section: Sports
Originally published: 1/4/08 at 9:51 PM EST
Last update: 1/9/08 at 5:28 PM EST
SCHENECTADY, N.Y. - The Plattsburgh State men's basketball team was unable to recover from a 17-point deficit at the half and lost to non-conference Gordon College 80-62 at the Viniar Athletic Center in the opening game of the Sig Makofski Invitational Tournament hosted by Union College.
The second loss on the season for the 19th ranked Cardinals (7-2) was also their second in a row after losing to Occidental College in early December.
In that loss the Cards had trouble shooting the ball, and the problems continued against the Fighting Scots (7-2). The Cardinals shot 38.9 percent from the field, a slight improvement from the 36 percent clip they had in the first half. Those woes carried over to the three-point arc, where the team shot a poor 26.7 percent.
The win marked the first time the Fighting Scots had ever defeated a ranked team in school history.
The Cardinals came out in the second half with a renewed vigor and a basket by senior Khylan Hunt cut the deficit to eight. Gordon College countered with a 7-0 run, including two points from a technical foul by PSUC Head Coach Tom Curle and several trips to the charity stripe.
The Fighting Scots took advantage of the resurgent Cardinals propensity to foul, going to the line 23 times in the second half and converting all but one free-throw attempt to hold their imposing lead.
"We fell behind too much to a good team," Curle said.
Sophomore guards Aaron Trigg and Brady Bajema led Gordon with 18 points apiece while senior captain Michael Schnackenberg chipped in 14. As a team, the Fighting Scots shot 55.6 percent from the field - from there, Bajema was a perfect 7-7.
Curle appeared frustrated at several points throughout the game with officiating. It boiled over when he was called for a technical after stepping outside the box to argue a block by Travis Gorham that was whistled for a foul.
After the game, Curle was more concerned with his team's performance than the referees.
"I don't know if [the refs] were good or poor," Curle said. "They did a better job reffing than we did playing."
Senior Anthony Williams lead the Cards with 16 points on 3-11 shooting. It was the lowest amount of points scored all season by Williams, a Preseason All-American. Senior Travis Gorham had a double-double, scoring 14 and grabbing a game-high 12 rebounds.
The Cardinals return to action tomorrow at 1 p.m. for the consolation game and will play the losing team of Union College against SUNY Purchase.
Curle said he doesn't expect the poor performance to carry over.
"Oh yeah, we'll bounce back," he said.
The second loss on the season for the 19th ranked Cardinals (7-2) was also their second in a row after losing to Occidental College in early December.
In that loss the Cards had trouble shooting the ball, and the problems continued against the Fighting Scots (7-2). The Cardinals shot 38.9 percent from the field, a slight improvement from the 36 percent clip they had in the first half. Those woes carried over to the three-point arc, where the team shot a poor 26.7 percent.
The win marked the first time the Fighting Scots had ever defeated a ranked team in school history.
The Cardinals came out in the second half with a renewed vigor and a basket by senior Khylan Hunt cut the deficit to eight. Gordon College countered with a 7-0 run, including two points from a technical foul by PSUC Head Coach Tom Curle and several trips to the charity stripe.
The Fighting Scots took advantage of the resurgent Cardinals propensity to foul, going to the line 23 times in the second half and converting all but one free-throw attempt to hold their imposing lead.
"We fell behind too much to a good team," Curle said.
Sophomore guards Aaron Trigg and Brady Bajema led Gordon with 18 points apiece while senior captain Michael Schnackenberg chipped in 14. As a team, the Fighting Scots shot 55.6 percent from the field - from there, Bajema was a perfect 7-7.
Curle appeared frustrated at several points throughout the game with officiating. It boiled over when he was called for a technical after stepping outside the box to argue a block by Travis Gorham that was whistled for a foul.
After the game, Curle was more concerned with his team's performance than the referees.
"I don't know if [the refs] were good or poor," Curle said. "They did a better job reffing than we did playing."
Senior Anthony Williams lead the Cards with 16 points on 3-11 shooting. It was the lowest amount of points scored all season by Williams, a Preseason All-American. Senior Travis Gorham had a double-double, scoring 14 and grabbing a game-high 12 rebounds.
The Cardinals return to action tomorrow at 1 p.m. for the consolation game and will play the losing team of Union College against SUNY Purchase.
Curle said he doesn't expect the poor performance to carry over.
"Oh yeah, we'll bounce back," he said.
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