Score: University of Rochester 88, Elmira College 50
Records: Rochester (6-0), Elmira (2-3)
Location: Rochester, N.Y. -- Louis Alexander Palestra

ROCHESTER, N.Y. -- Elmira College men's basketball was defeated 88-50 by the host Yellowjackets of the University of Rochester in the championship game of the Lexington Rochester Airport Hotel Tournament on Sunday afternoon.

Rochester, which remained undefeated and improved to 6-0 on the season, never trailed the Soaring Eagles and quickly ran ahead by double digits. The fast start was fueled by tournament MVP Zack Ayers, who scored eight his team's first 13 points to start the first half.

Henry Cuffee '19, Anthony Abate '19, Justin Porrett '19, and Kyle McCreery '20 each connected on 3-point field goals in the first half, but it was a subpar shooting effort that proved to be costly for the Soaring Eagles. Over half of EC's field goals – 32-of-54 to be exact – came from beyond the arc, but Elmira finished the contest with only seven makes, equaling a 21.9 3-point field goal percentage.

On the other hand, the Yellowjackets registered a percentage of 58.9 (33-of-56) from the floor.

Alex Ischiropoulos '20 performed admirably in the second half for Elmira. He scored all of his team-leading 11 points in the second stanza. He made a trio of five 3-point attempts, including back-to-back treys in the latter portion of the half.

Turning Point
It was the clear that the game plan to topple a U of R team that received votes in the preseason edition of the D3hoops.com Top 25 Poll called for a heavy dose of 3-point attempts to keep up with the high-scoring Yellowjackets. But for a team that has reset the program's season records for made treys over the last two years, Sunday was an off day. Although the 32 attempts marked the most for EC from beyond the arc since February 14, 2015, the 21.9 3-point field goal percentage was its worst since January 24, 2015 (21.7-percent).

Inside the Box Score

• Rochester outshot Elmira by a wide margin in terms of field goal percentage, 58.9-to-31.5.
• EC made only 7-of-32 attempted 3-pointers, while the Yellowjackets finished 10-for-26.
• Neither team was successful from the foul line, as EC converted 9-of-16 tries and U of R made 12-of-22.
• The Yellowjackets held a slim advantage in rebounds, 35-to-33.
• Ischiropoulos led Elmira with 11 points, all coming in the second half.
• Jeremy Every '20 followed with nine points to go along with three assists.
• Connor Bays '18 was Elmira's leading rebounder with six.
• Ayers paced Rochester with 21 points. He made 10 of his 11 field goals.
• Tucker Knox and Sam Borst-Smith netted 15 and 13 points, respectively, for the Yellowjckets.

News and Notes

• Elmira falls to 2-3 on the season.
• EC saw its two-game win streak was snapped with the loss.
• Rochester extended its lead in the all-time series to 12-3.
• Cuffee and Every were both named to the Lexington Rochester Airport Hotel All-Tournament Team.
• Every averaged 10.5 points, 3.5 rebounds, and 2.5 assists per game at the tournament.
• Cuffee averaged 12.0 points and 7.0 rebounds in the two-game weekend tournament.
• The 11 points and trio of 3-pointers are both season bests for Ischiropoulos.

Up Next
The Elmira College men's basketball team will head north to Canton, New York, to face the Saints of St. Lawrence University on Sunday, December 4th, at 2:00 p.m.