FARMINGDALE, N.Y. - Isaiah Austin (Albany) hit a tie-breaking 3-pointer with 26 seconds remaining and the Cortland men's basketball team defeated nationally 25th-ranked University of St. Joseph (Conn.), 61-57, in the championship game of the Farmingdale State Tip-Off Tournament.
 
Cortland (3-1) was led by tournament MVP Aaron Coston (Kerhonkson/Rondout Valley), who finished with 15 points, nine rebounds and four assists. All-tournament selection Kendall Arcuri (Staten Island/St. Joseph by-the-Sea) finished with 11 points, six rebounds and three assists. Austin scored 10 points and Joel Davis (Watertown) tallied eight points.
 
St. Joseph (3-2) was led by Lence Altenor, who scored 22 points and earned a spot on the all-tournament team. Jakari Tertulien hit 5-of-8 shots and ended with 10 points, while Billy Ray Barnes III and Deivone Tanksley Jr. each scored nine points.
 
Cortland led 32-28 at halftime and extended its lead to nine points on five occasions in the second half, the last at 54-45 on a Nolan Raymond (Queens Village/Vermont Academy (VT)) with 5:41 left. The Blue Jays scored the next nine points, capped by a Roel Figueroa layup with 1:35 remaining, to tie the game at 54-54.
 
Coston hit a 3-pointer with 1:06 left to give the lead back to Cortland, but Altenor was fouled shooting a 3-pointer with 46 ticks remaining and made all three free throws to tie the game. On Cortland's next possession following a timeout, Coston kicked out a pass to Austin who buried the go-ahead 3-pointer. Altenor missed a contested 3-pointer with eight seconds left, and Coston made the first of two free throws with six seconds left to seal the victory.
 
USJ shot 51 percent from the field compared to Cortland's 44 percent, but the Red Dragons made seven 3-pointers compared to three by the Blue Jays, and 14 USJ turnovers led to 18 Cortland points.
 
Cortland returns to action on Tuesday, Nov. 25, with a non-league game at St. John Fisher.