Score: St. John Fisher College 75, Elmira College 68
Records: St. John Fisher (17-5, 11-2 E8), Elmira (4-19, 2-12 E8)
Location: Manning and Napier Varsity Gym – Rochester, NY

Rochester, NY -- The Elmira College men's basketball team put a scare into regionally-ranked St. John Fisher College on the road Friday night, but ultimately fell to the Cardinals 75-68.

The Soaring Eagles scored the first eight points of the game on a layup from John Mullane '16 and a pair of three-pointers from Justin Henderson '16. The EC defense held the Cardinals off of the board for the first 4:38.

The early run was erased shortly thereafter, as Fisher went on a 14-5 run to take a one-point lead midway through the first half. The two teams would go back-and-forth from there, playing to ties at 16-, 21-, and 28-all. Elmira grabbed its last lead of the contest, 29-28, on a Mullane free throw 3:17 before the half, but Fisher led by four, 36-32, at the intermission.

The Soaring Eagles stayed within striking distance throughout the second half, trimming the deficit down to two points with a Hayden Harkins '18 trey at the 4:52 mark. The final dagger that would seal the win for Fisher came in the form of a Tyler Hart three-pointer two minutes later, extending the lead back to 69-62. The Cardinals made their free throws down the stretch to keep the lead at a comfortable distance.

Turning Point
A 14-3 Elmira run, sparked by a trey from Justin Porrett '19 and three more from Harkins, cut an 11-point Fisher lead down to a mere two points at 64-62. The Cardinals quickly halted the momentous rally with a pair of free throws from Tyler English and a three-pointer from Hart, extending the lead back to seven points. The closest EC could come from the lead in the final two minutes of regulation was five.

Inside the Box

• Fisher shot 53.1-percent (26-for-49) from the floor, Elmira was nearly 10 percentage points worse at 43.5-percent (27-for-62).
• The Soaring Eagles were hot from downtown, shooting 13-for-28 (46.4-percent) from three-point range.
• The Cardinals finished 6-for-17 (35.3-percent) from beyond the arc.
• Fisher out-rebounded Elmira 35-to-30.
• EC dished out one more assist than the Cardinals, 17-to-16.
• St. John Fisher converted 17-of-22 free throws; EC only attempted four with one make.
• Harkins scored a team-high 17 points off of the bench and shot 5-for-9 from three-point range.
• Porrett threatened to register a triple-double with 11 points, eight assists and a team-high seven rebounds.
• Henderson scored nine points on 3-for-6 shooting from beyond the arc.
• Big man Keegan Ryan led all scorers with 19 points and recorded a double-double with 10 boards.
• English (16), Hart (14) and Zach Ottaway (10) also scored double figures for Fisher.

News and Notes

• The Cardinals take the season series, two-games-to-none.
• Harkins is now eighth all-time in program history for made three-pointers in a season with 69. Three more will move him into sixth place.
• Henderson needs four more threes to move into a two-way tie for 10th place in career treys.
• Porrett's eight dimes tied his season high, while his 11 points give him double digits for the 13th time in his rookie campaign.
• Justin Ruback '18 went 2-for-2 from three-point range, giving him multiple treys for the first time in his career.
• Elmira made 10-plus three-pointers for the 10th time this season, with 13 falling three-shy of the season high.

Up Next
The Soaring Eagles conclude the weekend back-to-back in Rochester with a visit to Empire 8 Conference opponent Nazareth College on Saturday, February 13th, at 2:00 p.m.