POTSDAM, N.Y. - The Oneonta men's basketball team snapped a five-game losing streak with a 67-65 win over Potsdam on Saturday afternoon. The Red Dragons move to 9-8 overall and 4-6 in the SUNYAC, while the Bears fall to 2-14 and 2-7 in the conference.
"I am proud of our guys. They played extremely tough, showed grit, and fought hard for forty minutes," said head coach Cameron Conover. "Even when we didn't shoot the ball well, our fight and defensive desire kept us in the game."
Potsdam jumped out to an early 5-0 lead, with Parker Kelly knocking down a triple at 17:53. Nicholas Cortez scored inside, and a Bryson Brown layup pushed the Bears' lead to 12-2. Sophomore Kobe Long (Rochester, NY/McQuaid) converted an and-one, but Potsdam's Mohammad Sylla (Bronx, NY/Darrow) netted a fastbreak three-pointer to bring the lead back to ten.
A 6-0 Oneonta run with four points from senior Zyeir Lawrence (Oneonta, NY/Oneonta) cut the Potsdam advantage to 17-15. Freshman Cam LaClair (Selkirk, NY/Bethlehem) scored at 8:48, and junior Elijah Castillo (Bronx, NY/St. Raymonds) knocked down free throws to tie 19-19 at 7:43. Three ties followed, with Lawrence scoring five straight points to give the Red Dragons a 28-25 lead. Cortez responded with back-to-back baskets to retake the lead, and the Bears built up to 35-32 with six seconds left in the half. Lawrence netted a final basket off a Tyler Harts (Queens, NY/Sewanaka) assist to make it a one-point game at the break.
LaClair and Syalla traded triples until the score was 41-41. Long hit a trey at 16:27 to take a two-point lead, but a 7-0 Potsdam run put the Bears up by five.
Long hit another three at 7:29, and a pair of free throws from senior Christian Rogers (New Rochelle, NY/New Rochelle) gave Oneonta a 60-56 lead.
Oneonta capitalized on free throws in the final minutes, with Long knocking down two at 2:16 to make it 67-64. Potsdam scored a free throw the following possession, but that was the final basket on either side.
Lawrence scored a team-high 18 points with five rebounds. Long added 17 points, four boards, and a steal. Castillo finished with 14 points, five rebounds, and a block. LaClair added ten points, seven rebounds, and three assists.
Sylla finished with 21 points and eight rebounds, while Parker Kelly had 13 points and nine boards. Cortez scored 12 points, five rebounds, and four assists.
Oneonta returns home to face Canton on Tue. Jan. 28 at 7:30 p.m.
