Five Double-Figure Scorers Lead Cortland Men Past Buffalo St., 91-80

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CORTLAND, N.Y. – James Morales (Mount Kisco/Fox Lane) led five Cortland double-figure scorers with 18 points as Cortland defeated visiting Buffalo State, 91-80, in SUNYAC men's basketball play.

Cortland improved to 5-2 overall and 2-1 in league play, while Buffalo State dropped to 5-2 and 1-2. The Red Dragons will host Fredonia Saturday at 2 p.m.

Morales connected on 4-of-6 shots from 3-point range and added four rebounds, two assists and two steals. Justin Cooper (Pine Plains/Stissing Mountain) finished with 15 points, eight rebounds and two assists, while Justin Prendergast (Monroe/Monroe-Woodbury) made 7-of-8 field goals and ended with 14 points and five boards.

Also for the Red Dragons, Zach Lydon (Elizaville/Stissing Mountain) tallied 11 points and blocked three shots, and Andre Hampton (Bronx/Frederick Douglass Academy) scored 10 points and grabbed six rebounds. Lydon and Hampton each shot 4-of-6 from the floor, with Hampton hitting two treys in three attempts.

Mike Henry led Buffalo State with 20 points and seven rebounds. Jordan Glover hit five 3-pointers and finished with 17 points, Lovell Smith scored 17 points on 7-of-13 shooting and recorded four steals, and Nico McLean finished with 16 points, seven assists, six rebounds and two blocks.

The teams played a tight first half throughout, with Cortland extending a 34-31 lead to 40-33 at the break on a late 6-2 run that featured 3-pointers by Hampton and Nicky Bonura (Mount Kisco/Fox Lane). Cortland led 58-47 with 13:48 remaining, then mounted a 15-4 run over the next four minutes to go up 73-51. Lydon scored six points during that stretch.

The Bengals, however, quickly got back within 12 at 73-61 with 7:47 left on a 10-0 run that started with a Dom Grayer 4-point play and ended with a Henry 3-pointer. Cortland was able to push its lead to 19 points over the next three minutes, and the Red Dragons held a double-figure advantage the rest of the game.

Cortland shot 55 percent from the field in the second half and finished the game at exactly 50 percent (31-of-62). The Red Dragons made 12-of-25 3-pointers (48 percent) and 17-of-22 free throws (77 percent). Buffalo State shot 41 percent from the field, 44 percent (11-of-25) from three, and went 11-of-15 (73 percent) at the charity stripe.