Box Score Box Score

     SUNY Oneonta seniors #Brian Beckford (Brooklyn/Christ the King)# and #Michael Grimes (Albany/Catholic Central)# scored 18 points each in leading the Red Dragons to a 78-68 win against Wheaton College of Massachusetts in its final game of the ECAC Holiday Festival in Florida. With the victory, Oneonta is now 8-1 overall as they enter the holiday break. Beckford's two-day performance earned him MVP of the event.
     The two teams played a tight first half with neither team holding more than a five point lead at any time during the opening 20 minutes. Grimes scored eight of his 18 in the first half including a layup to close out the first half and give Oneonta a 29-26 lead at the break.
     The Red Dragons shot an even 50 percent from the field in the first half and outrebounded the Lyons 20-12.
     The game remained close through the first 10 minutes of the second half until Oneonta put together a 13-1 run to break the game open. A made free throw by Beckford at the 5:56 mark gave the Red Dragons a 63-49 lead.
      The Lyons made a final push and cut the Oneonta lead to five points on a three point basket by Bruno Naylor, which made the score 71-66 with 56 seconds remaining. From there it became a free throw shooting contest with junior #Troy Talbot (Brooklyn/The School for Legal Studies)# making 4-of-4 down the stretch for the Red Dragons. Talbot finished the game with 17 points off the bench including 10-of-11 from the charity stripe. Talbot also had a team high six assists to go with a steal.
     Grimes led Oneonta today with eight rebounds followed by Beckford's seven boards as Oneonta finished the game with 41 rebounds including 13 off the offensive glass.
     The Red Dragons finished the game shooting 55 percent from the floor led by Grime's 6-of-10 and Beckford's 7-of-13.
     The 8-1 start for Oneonta is the first time in the program's history that they've recorded eight wins before Christmas. It also is the third time that the program has won eight of its first nine games, tying the two previous times at the start of the 1975-76 and 1996-97 seasons. The best start ever for the men's basketball program dates back to the 1949-50 season when the team won its first 19 games before dropping its final game of the season.
     Oneonta will not be in action again until the new year when they travel to Brockport on Friday, Jan. 8 for a game beginning at 8:00 p.m.