Pioneers Drop Heartbreaker

Alfred State and Niagara CCC battled to another barnburner in a Region III Division II 1st round contest on Tuesday night with the Blazers holding on for a 89-87 victory to advance to the Final Four.  NCCC (11-9) will take on #1 ranked and #1 seeded Erie CC on Saturday while ASC closes out the season with a 12-18 record.

The Blazers led 42-35 at half and never lost the lead in the second half.  NCCC led by as many 12 but the Pioneers never could get closer than one.  Trailing 88-84 with less than eight seconds left, Neil Wilson (Fort Worth, TX) hit his 9th three-pointer of the game to close it to 88-87.  After a quick foul, Dyrell Dolson made one of two foul shots with just over two seconds left giving the Pioneers one last chance to tie or win the game.  Yanni Gobezai's (Bethesda, MD) half-court heave fell short as the horn ran.

Wilson scored 33 for the the second straight contest.  He was 12 for 20 from the floor and 9 for 12 from three-point land.  He also added six rebounds and four assists.  Gobezai chipped in 26 points and passed out eight assists while Rasean Parris (Brooklyn/Benjamin Banneker) added 12 points.  Ryan Caron (Prattsburgh) came off the bench and finished with eight.

In the last two games, both vs. Niagara, Wilson was 16 for 22 from three.  He finishes the season with 501 points.

AJ Roberts led five Blazers in double-figures with 28 points and 13 rebounds.  He also had five assists and five blocks.  Robbie Seyler added 21, Charles Shellman had 13, Richard Davis 12, and Dolson finished with 11.

The #4 Pioneers defeated NCCC 85-83 on Saturday to clinch the home court. 

Alfred State will play host to the Region III Division II Final Four this weekend.  Niagara will take on #1 Erie CC at 1 p.m. on Saturday followed by #2 Monroe CC taking on the winner of the #3 Genesee CC/#6 JCC-Olean contest at 3 p.m.  The winners of the two semifinals will play at 1 p.m. on Sunday for the regional championship.