Six Double-Figure Scorers Lead Cortland Past Plattsburgh, 96-71, in SUNYAC Men's Basketball Semifinals
| Final | 1 | 2 | T |
|---|---|---|---|
|
|
35 | 36 | 71 |
|
|
49 | 47 | 96 |
Cortland Sports Information Department
CORTLAND, N.Y. - Six Cortland players scored in double figures as the top-seeded Red Dragons defeated fifth-seeded Plattsburgh, 96-71, in the SUNYAC men's basketball tournament semifinals at Corey Gymnasium.
Cortland (22-4), the defending SUNYAC champion, will host Oswego in the conference title game Saturday at 4 p.m. Oswego (23-4) defeated second-seeded Oneonta, 83-69, in Friday's opening semifinal contest.
Aaron Coston (Kerhonkson/Rondout Valley) led Cortland with 21 points and seven rebounds. He hit 9-of-16 shots from the field and also handed out four assists. Kendall Arcuri (Staten Island/St. Joseph by-the-Sea) finished with 16 points, six rebounds and four assists.
Gaige Armbrewster (Oakfield/Oakfield-Alabama) enjoyed a perfect shooting night en route to a career-high 15 points. He was 7-for-7 from the field with one 3-pointer. Nolan Raymond (Queens Village/Vermont Academy) scored 12 points on 5-of-8 shooting, Joel Davis (Watertown) registered 10 points, six rebounds and five assists, and Gavyn Pacheco (Hopewell Junction/John Jay-East Fishkill) made 4-of-5 shots, including both of his 3-point attempts, and scored 10 points. Isaiah Austin (Albany) nearly made it seven Cortland double-figure scorers with eight points.
Plattsburgh (13-13) was led by Reem Welch with 26 points, eight assists and six rebounds. He connected on 10-of-16 shots overall, 4-of-7 from the 3-point arc. Jaiden Gladney and Elijah Morris each scored 14 points, with Morris also adding four assists.
Cortland shot 58 percent from the field, starting with 62 percent (21-of-34) accuracy in the first half on the way to a 49-35 halftime lead. Plattsburgh did most of its damage from long distance. The Cardinals hit 16-of-31 3-pointers but only 8-of-23 from inside the arc, leading to Cortland's dramatic 54-12 "points in the paint" advantage.
Plattsburgh trailed 60-38 with 17:41 left in the second half, but the Cardinals fought back and got to within 10 at 69-59 on a Gladney 3-pointer with 10:51 remaining. Cortland responded with an 18-2 run over the next five and a half minutes to take an 85-61 lead. Davis scored six points and Armbrewster five during that stretch.
Team Stats
| Game Statistics | Plattsburgh | Cortland |
|---|---|---|
| Field Goals | (24-54) | (39-67) |
| Field Goal % | 44.4% | 58.2% |
| Rebounds | 22 | 37 |
| Assists | 14 | 21 |
| Turnovers | 13 | 9 |
| Pts off Turnovers | 8 | 22 |
| 2nd Chance Pts | 4 | 17 |
| Pts in the Paint | 12 | 54 |
| Fastbreak Pts | 3 | 8 |
| Bench Pts | 6 | 26 |
