At a glance
The Alfred State College men's basketball team trailed 36-25 at halftime and by as many as 14 in the second half but rallied for a 76-73 victory over Mercyhurst North East.
The Alfred State College men's basketball team trailed 36-25 at halftime and by as many as 14 in the second half but rallied for a 76-73 victory over Mercyhurst North East. The Pioneers improve to 9-10 overall and 3-4 in WNYAC play.
Trailing by 14 with seventeen minutes remaining the Pioneers kept chipping away and took their first lead since the first half with 1:29 remaining on a lay-up by Neil Wilson (Fort Worth, TX). Deshaun Carter connected on two foul shots to give MNE a 73-72 lead with 30 seconds left. On the next possesion, Travis Brannen (Elmira Free) scored to give the Pioneers the lead for good. Mercyhurst missed a jumper and Brannen connected on two foul shots before Wilson intercepted a pass before the Saints could put up a three-point attempt at the buzzer.
Wilson led the blue and gold with 20 points while Brannen finished with 19 points and eight boards. Dan Foley (Irondequoit) chipped in 12 points and eight boards, Chris Lorenzo (Syracuse/Corcoran) added nine points and seven rebounds, and Geoff Hicks (Buffalo/Cleveland Hill) had his best game of the season finishing with eight points and nine rebounds. Chris Dalton (Elmira Southside) connected on two clutch three-pointers and finished with nine points.
Claus Maagard led the Saints with 16 points and eight rebouds while Diontez May chipped in 15. Warren Bryant had 11 points and 10 assists and Clint Foster contributed 11 points off the bench. MNE connected on 13 of 31 attempts (8 for 16 in the first half) from beyond the three point line.
The Pioneers shot a sizzling 61.8% (21 for 34) in the second half after shooting just 30.3% in the first frame. ASC held a 44 to 38 advantage on the boards.
ASC continues a three-game homestand on Sunday when they tip-off vs. Medaille JV at 12:30 p.m.