New Paltz, N.Y. – The SUNY Potsdam men's basketball (3-5, 1-1 SUNYAC) team bowed to New Paltz (4-2, 2-0 SUNYAC) 79-74 in a tightly contested matchup. Senior forward
Brandon Segar Jr. (Jamaica, N.Y./Richmond Hill) paced the Bears with his fifth double-double of the season registering a career-high 26 points and 12 rebounds. Junior guard
Colton Huestis (Ticonderoga, N.Y./Ticonderoga) posted a season-best 17 points to compliment his teammate.
Both teams traded baskets as New Paltz lead by five at 15:30 in the opening half. Twenty seconds later, Huestis sank a three-pointer to put the Bears within two. The Hawks then went on a 7-2 run to extend their lead back to seven with 12:55 remaining. A few plays later, sophomore guard
MeSean Johnson (Ogdensburg, N.Y./Ogdensburg Free Academy) found sophomore guard
Jeff Williamson (Brooklyn, N.Y./Christ the King) who nailed the trifecta. At 11:00, junior forward
Ahamadou Sillah (Bronx, N.Y./Kipp NYC College Prep) laid one in near the basket to trim the Hawk's lead to three. The Bears were never able to catch the Hawks as they took a 41-33 lead into the break.
Coming out of halftime, Segar, and Sillah each scored a layup to kickstart the Bears offense. Potsdam continued to work on defense and chip away at the Hawks lead. The Bears routed a 12-0 run to take their first lead of the evening 63-61 with 6:53 remaining. Segar had six points in that stretch. With New Paltz leading by two late in the half, Segar managed to locate Williamson for his third three-pointer of the game to take another one-point lead with 3:40 to go. In the final minutes of the contest, foul trouble began to plague the Bears as New Paltz hit eight free throws to push the game out of reach and seal the victory for the Hawks.
Sillah recorded 14 points and Williamson finished the game with 11 to round out the offense for the Bears.
Rylan Blondo registered a team-best 16 points and Tyreik Frazier had 15 for the Hawks. Jonah Bevacqua and Sean St. Lucia had 13 and 11 points, respectively.
The Bears are back in action tomorrow when they head to Oneonta for a 4 p.m. tip-off with the Red Dragons.
