Score: Elmira College 81, Nazareth College 80
Records: Elmira (7-17, 5-10 E8), Nazareth (18-6, 12-3 E8)
Location: Speidel Gymnasium -- Elmira, N.Y.

ELMIRA, N.Y. -- The Elmira College men's basketball team stunned Nazareth College on Saturday afternoon at Speidel Gymnasium, as Henry Cuffee '19 made a go-ahead free throw with 2.5 seconds left and Mason Weir '21 intercepted the ensuing inbounds pass to seal an 81-80 victory over the Golden Flyers.

The upset of Naz is remarkable for several reasons. Prior to tip-off, EC celebrated Class of 2019 Recognition Day in honor of graduating seniors Cuffee, Anthony Abate '19, Justin Porrett '19 and Alex Rosen '19. While all four players contributed significantly in the final home game of their collegiate careers, Cuffee led all scorers with 24 points, including the game-winning point from the line.

The triumph over the Golden Flyers, who are second in the Empire 8 Conference standings following the loss, marks the first for the Soaring Eagles in 14 years. The last such win for Elmira came on February 19, 2005, by a 71-66 score, and also required a second-half comeback inside Speidel.

EC trailed by as many as 13 points in the first half, lastly inside the five-minute mark at 36-23 following a 3-point field goal by Naz's Jake Burgio. But the Purple and Gold began chipping away at the deficit before the intermission, closing the gap to four points, 42-38. Even after the Golden Flyers pushed their advantage back to 12 points in the second half, it wasn't enough to keep the Soaring Eagles grounded in the final 13 minutes of regulation.

Down 68-58 with 8:43 remaining, Jesse Adelson '20 drew a foul on a 3-point attempt and buried two of his three shots. After Brendan Wind scored two points on the other end of the court, EC went on a 7-0 run, with two points from Weir and Jeremy Every '20 sandwiched around a Cuffee trey. Inside the two-minute mark, Shawn Backus '21 sunk a 3-pointer to make it a four-point game, 78-74.

With 1:33 on the clock, Wind scored the last points of the afternoon for the Golden Flyers, putting the visitors ahead 80-74. Porrett recorded the next four points by slicing through the defense for a lay-in and making two shots from the charity stripe. On Nazareth's next possession, Wind committed a costly turnover, sailing a pass to the right side of the court out of bounds. Looking to tie the game, Cuffee bullied his way around his defender and kissed the ball off of the glass to level the score at 80-all.

Coming out of a timeout with 8.3 seconds to go, the Golden Flyers set up a play for Burgio, their leading scorer of the day with 21 points. The senior forward rolled off of a screen, gathered the inbounds pass and took an uncontested pull-up jumper from the right elbow. His shot was off of the mark, and while battling for the rebound, Chris Jones was whistled for reaching over the back of Cuffee.

Cuffee stepped to the foul line with a mere 2.5 seconds remaining and two attempts to take the lead. Although his first try clanked off of the rim, he was pure on his second, which gave Elmira the lead for the first time since the 14:27 mark of the opening half.

Without a timeout to design a Hail Mary play, Naz's Stephen Gabel lofted a pass intended for Burgio near midcourt, but a leaping Weir was there to snag the harmless throw and secure the thrilling win.

In Their Own Words…
Head Coach Randie Torgalski when asked about getting an exciting win on Class of 2019 Recognition Day…
"I don't know how long it's been since we last beat them, so it's a pretty special win. For the seniors to have their last home game be a win, and for it to be one that was so exciting, entertaining and impressive was pretty special in itself. And for our seniors to make big plays down the stretch was pretty nice. All four contributed to the win today. They definitely earned it."

Coach Torgalski on the adjustments Elmira had to make when Nazareth began to pull away…
"We had to pay a little more attention to the details on defense. We weren't finding guys fast enough; everything was just a half-second too late. We had to keep challenging and keep active with our hands, and that's what we did. We did a great job on the boards, and we kept attacking on offense. We kept getting shots and moving the ball. Our movement was much better."

Coach Torgalski on senior Henry Cuffee's explosive performance in his last home game…
"He could have packed it in, and the whole team could have packed it in. He could have just played this out, but he didn't, and we didn't. It was nice to see him show up like I know he can for us. It's a good way for him to go out."

News and Notes

• Elmira improved to 7-17 overall with a 5-10 conference record.
• The Soaring Eagles snapped a 27-game losing streak against Nazareth with Saturday's win.
• EC tied a season-high with a plus-11 rebound margin.
• From the line, Elmira shot 86.7 percent and its 26 free throw makes are the team's second-highest single-game total of the year.
• Cuffee tied a season-high with 24 points and notched his first double-double of the year with 10 rebounds.
• Porrett was second on the team in points (18) and had a game-high seven assists.
• With one game remaining in 2018-19, Porrett needs three more assists to reach 600 in his career.
• Every was perfect from the foul line (10-for-10) and was the third Soaring Eagle to score double-digit points with 12.
• Abate played a season-high 21 minutes, collected three rebounds and had two assists.
• Rosen made his fourth start of the year and grabbed one rebound, which led to a second-chance field goal.

Up Next
The 2018-19 regular season comes to a close on Tuesday, February 19, when Elmira visits Utica College for its Empire 8 finale. Tip-off against the Pioneers is scheduled for 7:30 p.m.