Men's Basketball

#9 Ithaca Hands Hartwick 78-59 Setback

ITHACA, NY - The Ithaca Bombers used a 13-0 run to turn a 6-3 deficit into a 10-point lead in the first half and they maintained a double-digit lead for the final 28 minutes against the Hartwick Hawks on Friday night at Ben Light Gymnasium. The Bombers are now 19-1 overall and 10-1 in the Empire 8. Hartwick is 8-11 and 2-9.

Sean Leahy led four IC players in double figures with 20 points. He connected on 8 of 14 from the floor, hit three three-pointers and grabbed six rebounds. Sean Burton added 16 points, four treys, and dished 11 assists. Chris Cruz netted 15 points, and Jordan Marcus scored 10.

Jan Cocozziello (Scotch Plains, NJ) tied Leahy for a game-high 20 points, hitting 10 of 20 from the floor. He also added five assists. Mark Blazek (Erie, PA) was the only other Hartwick player in double digits with 13. Freshman Dan DeVantier (Roscoe, NY) was the Hawks' next highest scorer with six.

After Hartwick took a 6-3 lead on two jumpers from Cocozziello and one from Blazek early in the contest, Leahy netted seven and Cruz dropped in six as the Bombers recorded 13 straight points for a 10-point lead, 16-6, with 11:40 before halftime.

With the score 18-10, the Bombers would go on another 16-6 run spanning eight minutes and the lead grew to 18 points. A three-pointer by Martin McCann (Hopewell Junction, NY) and five points from Blazek would dig into the IC lead and cut it to 12 just before halftime.

The Bombers held onto at least a 12-point edge for the first seven minutes of the second half until a Cocozziello bucket made it a 10-point game (46-36) with 12:36 left to play in the game. Ithaca would score 18 of the game's next 24 points to grab a 22-point edge and kept a lead of 16 or more the rest of the way to earn the victory.

Both teams shot the ball in similar fashion on the night. The Hawks connected on 48% (26 of 54) of their shots and 42% of their three-point attempts. The Bombers were 29 for 61 from the field (48%) and hit 34% from downtown. IC, however, ended the game with 11 three-point baskets and converted Hartwick turnovers into 19 points.

The Hawks will look to avenge an earlier season loss to Elmira College tomorrow at 4 p.m. The Hawks were beaten by a final count of 72-61 on Jan. 23rd.