POTSDAM, N.Y. –The SUNY Potsdam men's basketball team (16-4, 11-2 SUNYAC) pulled away from the Buffalo State Bengals (3-14, 1-12 SUNYAC) late for their third straight win on Friday night. Sophomore forward Isaiah Brown (Westside Queens, N.Y./Nia Prep) scored 19 points (12 in the second half) and grabbed six rebounds in the Bear Pride Night victory. Freshman center Tyrese Baptiste (Brooklym, N.Y./Eagle Academy II) secured another double-double with 13 points, 10 rebounds and sent away three shots. For the Bengals, junior guard Sheldon Adams (Rochester, N.Y./Bishop Kearney) finished with a game-high 21 points, grabbed four rebounds and dished out four assists.
 
Senior captain Jayquan Thomas (Hollis, N.Y./Richmond Hill) scored the first four points early with a layup through traffic a few seconds in and then two free throws at 18:29. Freshman guard Argjend Imeri (Syracuse, N.Y./Nottingham) then got Buffalo State on the scoreboard, making layups on back-to-back possessions. Potsdam obtained a slight edge halfway after Brown and Bengals junior guard Jordan Christopher (Bronx, N.Y./Mott Haven Campus) exchanged 3-pointers. After the Bears took the largest lead of the half at nine, the Bengals responded with an 11-2 run. Jordan scored nine of the 11 points during the spurt. After a Potsdam basket, the Bengals got back-to-back threes from Adams and Imeri. With 44 seconds left, freshman forward Ahamadou Sillah (Bronx, N.Y./Kipp NYC College Prep) got the offensive rebound off a missed three and scored. Adams closed the half with a steal and fastbreak jumper, giving Buffalo State a 38-34 halftime lead.
 
The first field-goal of the second half was a 3-pointer from the top of the key from senior captain Danny Delsol-Lowry (Queens, N.Y./Queens High School of Teaching). The basket momentarily tied the game, but Adams hit his own three on the other end, picking up where he left off. A layup by Adams at 16:12 gave the Bengals their largest lead of the game (5), forcing a Bears timeout. Potsdam quickly responded with a 7-0 run, to regain the lead. The run started with a basket inside by Baptiste and concluded with a 3-pointer from Delsol-Lowry. The Bengals answered with a run of their own, scoring eight unanswered points midway through the half. With the Bengals leading 62-57 with 6:03 left, the Bears used a 14-0 run led by Thomas to award them their largest lead at nine. Thomas closed the run with a fastbreak layup with 1:38 left. While Jordan made two jumpers late, the Bears completed their comeback with free throws, getting the 73-67 win.
 
Thomas ended the night scoring 17 points to go along with six rebounds and two rejections. Senior captain Aaron Armstrong (Lisbon, N.Y./Madrid-Waddington), sophomore guard Isaiah Joseph (Harlem, N.Y./Izguierdo Health & Science Charter) and Delsol-Lowry each had six.
 
Jordan scored 20 points and snagged eight rebounds for the Bengals, while Imeri had 12. Senior forward Kay Grant (Jamaica, N.Y./Thomas Jefferson) chipped in with eight points and 12 rebounds.
 
Potsdam shot 40.7-percent from the field and 41.2-percent from behind-the-arc. Buffalo State shot 40-percent from the field and  37-percent from 3-point range.
 
The Bears are back in action tomorrow as they host the Fredonia Blue Devils at 4 p.m.