CORTLAND, N.Y. – The Oswego State men’s basketball team opened its SUNYAC slate with a 77-70 loss at Cortland on Saturday afternoon. Oswego now holds a 1-4 mark on the year while the Red Dragons advance to 4-1.
In a nip-and-tuck first half, Oswego kept closing a small gap but could never get over the hump. At the break, the Lakers trailed Cortland 39-32. The Lakers adjustments at the break seemed to do the trick as they caught the home team. Outscoring Cortland 11-4 to begin the second half, an Ian Schupp 3-pointer at 16:15 knotted the game at 43-43.
Cortland was able to stop the Oswego momentum on its home floor, however, eventually pushing the lead to double-figures in the waning minutes of the game.
Ian Schupp led all scorers over the 40 minutes with 23 points. It is a new season-high for the senior and is second to only his 31-point performance at Brockport on Feb. 18, 2017 for his Laker career.
The guard was aided by a career-day beyond the arc. Schupp attempted 11 treys on the day and seven found their way through the net. The seven 3-pointers made was nearly double his previous career-high, which was four on several different occasions.
Also in double-figures in the point column were Jamir Ferebee and Tyler Pierre. Both players were toying with double-doubles, as Ferebee scored 17 points and missed the mark by just two rebounds, collecting eight. Pierre had 14 points and missed his double-double by just one, gathering nine boards.
Freshman point Liam Sanborn was stellar running the offense, dishing out eight helpers to his teammates without turning the ball over in 19 minutes of action. Sanborn’s eight assists was exactly half of the Lakers’ 16, as Ferebee and Schupp each had three while Josh Ivey chipped in two.
Ivey also helped on the glass, pulling down two offensive rebounds and five on defense for an output of seven.
Team statistics showed the close nature of the contest, as the two teams were even on points off turnovers (9-9) and bench points (12-12) while the Lakers held advantages in points in the paint (28-24) and second-chance points (21-10).
The Lakers will host its home-opener at 7:30 p.m. on Tuesday when they host the Red Dragons of Oneonta in a league matchup.
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