Box Score

Ithaca, NY – The Elmira College Men's Basketball team got off to a quick start but struggled with its shooting falling 65-52 on the road at host Ithaca Tuesday evening in the conference opener for both teams. The win improves the Bombers to 3-2 overall and 1-0 in Empire 8 play, while the loss drops the Soaring Eagles to 0-6 and 0-1 in conference competition.

Elmira got off to a great start leading 18-11 midway through the first half after back-to-back treys by Derrick Vogel '14 and Jake Metcalf '15. The Purple and Gold extended their lead to as many as eight, at 23-15, after a Neil Randolph '15 lay-in with 6:40 remaining. The Bombers closed the half on a 10-5 spurt as EC led 28-25 at intermission.

Ithaca regained the lead just over a minute out of halftime after two Frank Mitchell free throws. At one point the Bombers used a 16-3 run to gain a 49-35 cushion with 12:58 remaining. EC got within eight points after a Josh Keys '14 stroke from long distance at the 8:03 mark, but Ithaca proved tough extending its lead to 15 and closing out the victory, 65-52.

Chris Cassidy '14 paced Elmira with a double-double finishing with 13 points and 13 rebounds in just 20 minutes. Meanwhile, Dan O'Brien '13 added 12 points and Kurt Dutcher '14 dished out six assists.

Tom Sweeney had a big game inside for Ithaca finishing with a game-high 15 points, while Mitchell added 13 points. Sean Rossi recorded 12 points and seven assists for the Bombers.

Ithaca had a huge 36-12 edge in points in the paint, while Elmira finished with a 13-7 second chance points advantage. The major difference in the contest came in shooting percentage where the Bombers made 48 percent of their shots, while the Soaring Eagles converted just 38 percent of their attempts.

The Men's Basketball team returns to the hardwood Friday when it travels to take on St. John Fisher College starting at 8:00 p.m.