X

Potsdam drops nail-biter against conference rival Plattsburgh

Posted 2/16/11

POTSDAM, N.Y. – The SUNY Potsdam men’s basketball team made another run at one of the strongest teams in the State University of New York Athletic Conference Tuesday, but again fell just short in …

This item is available in full to subscribers.

Please log in to continue

Log in

Potsdam drops nail-biter against conference rival Plattsburgh

Posted

POTSDAM, N.Y. – The SUNY Potsdam men’s basketball team made another run at one of the strongest teams in the State University of New York Athletic Conference Tuesday, but again fell just short in a 51-48 defeat against conference power Plattsburgh State at Maxcy Hall’s Jerry Welsh Gymnasium.

After taking a 48-47 lead with 2:27 to play in the contest, the Bears (7-16 overall, 6-10 SUNYAC) were shut out for the remaining time as Plattsburgh made 4-of-6 from the free throw line in that span.

Potsdam was unable to convert on a chance to take the lead with 1.7 seconds on the clock, allowing the Cardinals (15-8, 11-5) to sweep the season series.

The Bears, who are one-half game behind Oneonta for the No. 6 seed in the SUNYAC Tournament with two games to play, lost in similar fashion against first-place Oswego last Saturday.

“We need to execute better at the end of games,” Potsdam coach Sherry Dobbs said. “We played hard for the last 12-14 minutes of the game, but we need to figure out a way at the end.”

Plattsburgh seemed to have the momentum after taking a 41-33 advantage with 12:52 left in the second period. However, sparked by several hustle plays, Potsdam mounted a rally and eventually took the lead on a jumper by sophomore Curtis Pierce (Brooklyn, N.Y.), who finished with 10 points, seven rebounds, seven assists and four steals.

Senior Anthony Williams (Long Island, N.Y.), who made several key plays in the second-half stretch, posted 10 points and seven rebounds (five offensive) in 23 minutes off the bench.

“I thought we did a great job on the offensive glass, especially Anthony Williams and (freshman) Rob Duquette,” Dobbs said. “We ended up with 16 more shots than they did … unfortunately we didn’t start playing with intensity until midway through the second half.”

The Cardinals shot 47.8 percent from the field in the first half and 40.5 percent for the game, compared to 31 percent for the Bears. Potsdam turned 18 Plattsburgh turnovers into 18 points, while the bench outscored Plattsburgh reserves 21-11.

The Bears wrap up regular season play this Friday (8 p.m.) at Fredonia and Saturday (4 p.m.) at Buffalo State.