The St. John Fisher College men's basketball team fell to host and East Ave rival Nazareth College 85-67 in a mid-week conference match-up on Tuesday night. With the loss Fisher falls to .500 overall (9-9) and 2-5 in the Empire 8 Conference while the Golden Flyers improved to 12-6, 5-2.

Jason Norsen led the Cardinals on 9-for-12 shooting for 21 points and seven boards. Jordan Gettings finished with 14 points and dished out a team high five assists.

In the first half the Cardinals got on the board first with a layup from Optimystik Kinard. Fisher then trailed for the next eight minutes until Justin Plata tied the game at 15-15 with a sweeping underhanded shot across the lane. The two teams traded baskets over the next couple possessions, with Norsen scoring six-straight points to give the Cardinals a 21-18 lead.

With the scored knotted at 25-25 with 6:49 remaining, the Golden Flyers took control of the game, going on a 20-4 run to end the half with a 45-29 advantage. Nazareth shot well in the first half, shooting 47% (16-for-34) from the field and 50% (6-for-12) from beyond the arc.  The Cardinals shot better than their opponent from the field, shooting 52% (14-for-27) but shot a poor 17% (1-for-6) from the three-point line. Nazareth also held the distinct control on the boards, out rebounding Fisher 23-12 in the stanza.

It was more of the same in the second half, with the Golden Flyers starting on a 9-0 run and the Cardinals never threaten to get back in the game after that.


Fisher will return to action on Friday when it travels to face Elmira before traveling to Alfred for a Saturday contest.