Elmira at Hartwick
Game Details	Tuesday, Feb. 6 | Oneonta, N.Y. | 6:00 p.m.
Game Coverage	Live Video: Video Link Live Stats: Stats Link
Hartwick Links	Roster | Schedule | Stats

ELMIRA, N.Y. -- The Elmira College men's basketball team has an Empire 8 Conference battle against Hartwick College on Tuesday, February 6, at the Lambros Arena in Oneonta, New York. The Soaring Eagles and Hawks are scheduled to take flight at 6:00 p.m.
 
LAST TIME OUT
The Soaring Eagles fell to The Sage Colleges by just one point, 86-85, on Saturday at the Murray Athletic Center. After trailing 47-34 heading into the halftime break, EC orchestrated a dramatic comeback in the second half to pull the game within three points with 15 seconds left. It was at that point, that Henry Cuffee '19 came up with a steal of an inbounds pass and took a corner 3-pointer to tie the score. Unfortunately for Elmira, the ball caught the back of the rim and bounced out, which allowed the Gators to seal the victory with a free throw on the other end of the court. Cuffee finished the afternoon with a stellar stat line of 22 points, four assists, two rebounds and three steals. Sophomore guards Jeremy Every '20 and Jesse Adelson '20 also had solid games, as Every posted 18 points on 8-for-10 shooting from the floor and Adelson tallied 17 points with four treys.
 
WINNING THE TURNOVER GAME
A key factor of Elmira's comeback was winning the turnover battle. In the second half, the Gators committed 15 turnovers, compared to three for EC. This resulted in a 26-to-12 difference in points off turnovers in the game. Justin Porrett '19 was a key component of the Purple and Gold's ball security, as he committed zero turnovers, while dishing out eight assists in 38 minutes of action. Cuffee's aforementioned three steals paced all players and led to his fast-break dunk in the second half and to his corner trey that almost knotted the score at 85-all. Elmira's effective ball handling is even more impressive considering that Sage entered the bout as the conference's best team at causing opponent turnovers.  

SERIES HISTORY
The all-time series between Elmira and Hartwick has featured 74 previous encounters. After besting the Soaring Eagles by a 101-72 final score on January 25, the Hawks own a 47-26 lead in the series. The Purple and Gold last tasted victory in the 2014-15 campaign, when Elmira swept Hartwick in both bouts that season.  

SCOUTING HARTWICK
As losers of four straight, the Hawks enter Tuesday's contest 7-13 overall record and a 4-7 mark in E8 play. The Hawks are coming off of a busy weekend, which featured a 92-77 loss to Nazareth College on Friday and a 93-73 loss to St. John Fisher College on Saturday, both of which were played in Rochester, New York. The team's strongest attribute has been its efficiency from the free-throw line, as it ranks second in the country in free-throw percentage (79.7). Freshman guard Kevin Townes has been the team's most effective player from the charity stripe, as he is second in the conference and 27th in the country in free-throw percentage (89.1). Townes has also been the team's best scoring threat, as he paces the team in points per game with 17.1. Junior guard Brandon LaForest has been the team's best facilitator, as he paces the team and is second in the conference in assists per game (5.0).

UP NEXT
The Elmira men will have just one day off before returning to the hardwood on Thursday, February 8, to challenge Nazareth in E8 action at the Kidera Gymnasium in Rochester. The opening tip-off for the league tilt is slated for 6:00 p.m.