Elmira, NY – EC Men's Basketball looked to make it two wins in a row as they hosted the Pioneers of Utica College in an Empire 8 showdown.  Elmira entered tonight's conteste after coming off a 7 point win over Alfred while Utica enters after dropping tough game to St. John Fisher. 

In the first half Utica would jump out to an early 17-5 lead on the Soaring Eagles.  Fourth year player Zach Simpson '11 (Savona, NY -- Campbell-Savona) would throw down a two handed dunk at the 10:07 to end the Pioneer run.  Simpson's dunk sparked the EC offense as they would go on a 17-4 run, giving them their first lead of the game.  The teams would exchange leads for the remainder of the half until EC held a 28-27 lead with 2 seconds left.  Utica guard James Patterson '11 would then drain a jumper from the wing as time expired to give the Pioneers a slight advantage going into halftime.  Rookie guard Kurt Dutcher '14 (Gaylord, MI -- Gaylord) would lead all EC scorers with 9 points on 3-of-3 shooting from beyond the arc. 

Utica would build on their slim lead in the second half into a 13 point lead with 11:15 to play.  A pair of threes by Derrick Vogel '14 (Bel Air, MD -- CM Wright) and Josh Keys '14 (Bel Air, MD -- CM Wright)  cut the lead to five with 7:28 left in the half.  The Pioneers would defend their lead as Elmira chipped away to bring the game to within one point on huge three point from Keys with 11 seconds.  EC trailed by 3 with six to play before Dutcher took the ball the length of the court for a lay-up to bring the deficit back to one.  Elmira would force a late turnover giving the Soaring Eagles the b all with three seconds remaining.  After a timeout, Elmira inbounded the ball by their own bench, giving Keys a chance for the win from beyond the arc.  Keys would not be able to hit the shot as Patterson made a controversial block, giving Utica a two-point win. 

Three Elmira players reached double-digits in tonight's contest.  Simpson recorded a double-double as he scored 10 points and grabbed another 10 boards while Dutcher finished with 13 points, 4 rebounds, and 5 assists.  Keys led all EC scorers with 16 points in addition to snatching 5 rebounds. 

Elmira will look to bounce back after today's heartbreaker as they travel to Hoboken, NJ to take on the Ducks of Stevens Tech.  Tip-off is scheduled for 8:00 p.m. on Friday, February 18^th.