Brockport men's basketball places fourth at 46th annual Wendy's College Classic

Brockport men's basketball continued regular-season play last week with three games in the Wendy's Classic Tournament. The Golden Eagles started tournament play with a win, but that luck did not carry over to the other two games. The team suffered two more defeats, dropping their overall record to 1-5.  

Brockport began the Wendy's College Classic with a home game against the Raiders of Roberts Wesleyan Wednesday, Nov. 30. Brockport dominated the Raiders throughout the first half. At one point, the Golden Eagles went on a 13-0 run, and ended the half with a 45-32 lead.

In the second half, Roberts Wesleyan started to mount a comeback, but Brockport was too strong for the Raiders to overcome. The Golden Eagles held on making their way to a 79-68 victory.

"It was a great first win," senior forward Kyheem Green said.  "We needed a win since we have been struggling since the start of the season, but we will bounce back come league play and make a run in the conference."

Four members of the Golden Eagles scored points in the double digits during the team's first win of the season.  

Senior guard Gerald Williams led the team in scoring, with 22 points.  Green had 18 points, and 18 rebounds, which was a team high.  

Freshman guard Lance Legister contributed 13 points and  junior forward Donnell Jackson scored 12.

Leading the Golden Eagles in assists was junior guard Derek Klein with five.

Collectivly, Brockport shot 66 percent in Wedesday's win, compared to Roberts Wesleyan's 61 percent.  They also had 10 steals, compared to the Raiders' seven.  Both teams had three blocks.

Wednesday's game held special significance for one Golden Eagle in particular. Williams became the 21st member of the 1,000-point club at Brockport.  He only needed eight points prior to the game to do so. Following the game, his career total was 1,014.

Green said it was good to see Williams reach the 1,000 mark, and he actually had no clue he was close to it.

"I'm proud of him for making the list of Brockport's 1,000 point scorers," Green said.

The Golden Eagles played in their second game of the Wendy's Classic Friday, December 2.  Brockport traveled to Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT), where they faced off against the Hobart Statesmen.

Brockport was down 36-26 at the half, but managed to come back and take a 64-62 lead with less than three minutes to go in the game.

With only four seconds left, the Golden Eagles were up by one point in a 70-69 game, and on their way to victory No. 2 of the season.

However, the Statesmen ripped the victory away at the last second. Hobart's Matt Pebole caught a long, inbound pass and scored the game-winning layup at the buzzer.

Brockport was handed a heart-breaking 71-70 loss, and headed into the consolation game with a 1-4 record.

The Golden Eagles played in the consolation game Saturday, Dec. 3. Brockport played the University of Rochester Yellowjackets, who, after eight lead changes in the first half, was up 42-37.

Brockport battled back in the second half and took a 61-59 lead. However, the team was unable to maintain the lead and ended up with an 83-70 loss. As a result, Brockport placed fourth overall in the Wendy's Classic.

Four members of the Golden Eagle squad managed to score 60 of the team's 70 points during the loss. Williams had 22 and Jackson had 16, while Green and sophomore guard John Ivy both had 11.  Jackson, along with senior center Kazeem Are, both had six rebounds, which were team highs.

Following last week's games, Brockport's overall record was 1-5. This week, the Golden Eagles will look for their second win of the season as they begin conference play. Brockport hosted Oswego, Tuesday, Dec. 6, and will travel to Potsdam, Friday, Dec. 9, and Plattsburgh, Saturday, Dec. 10.