The SUNY Oneonta men's basketball team led early tonight in its match-up with rival SUNY Cortland, but a late run in the first half by Cortland gave them enough momentum to carry them to an 80-64 victory.  The loss for Oneonta dropped them to 8-6 overall and 4-4 in the SUNYAC while the win for Cortland raised their record to 13-3 overall and 8-1 in conference play.
 
A layup by sophomore Ian Schultz (Clifton Park/CBA) and a three-pointer by classmate Kevin Mackin (Nanuet/Nanuet) gave Oneonta an early 5-0 advantage.  An 11-0 run by Cortland gave them a 12-8 lead midway through the opening half.
 
The freshmen duo of Joseph Bull (Bronx/Mount St. Michael) and Andres Rivera (Bronx/Walton) gave Oneonta a lift combining to score 10 points over a three minute span to keep them close at 31-28 with 3:33 remaining.  Cortland ended the first half with eight unanswered points to grab a 39-28 lead at the break.
 
Cortland continued to build on its lead to as many as 23 points with just over eight minutes left in the contest before Oneonta made it interesting down the stretch.  Trailing 71-48, Oneonta made a push and cut its deficit to 13 points with just over two minutes to go in the game.  Freshman Jacob Rodriguez (Bronx/Mount St. Michael Academy) led the charge with seven points.
 
Cortland regrouped and held back Oneonta converting 5-of-6 free throws down the stretch.
 
Rivera and Mackin led Oneonta tonight with 11 points each.
 
Oneonta will host Fredonia on Friday night scheduled for 7:30pm.