PITTSFORD, N.Y. – The St. John Fisher College men's basketball team got back in the win column on Saturday as the Cardinals defeated Rochester Institute of Technology, 80-65, as part of the Mark's Pizzeria Crosstown Shootout inside Manning and Napier Varsity Gymnasium on Bobby Wanzer Court.  With the win, Fisher improved to 4-2 on the season while the Tigers dipped to 2-6 overall.

Sammy Robinson, who was named to the All-Tournament Team, had the hot hand early as the junior drilled five of his first seven shots from the field including a pair of 3-pointers as Fisher jumped ahead, 15-5, over the first four minutes of play.  The Tigers would claw their way back in to contention with back-to-back triples of their own to cut it to a four-point game, however, Fisher countered with 11 unanswered points fueled by six points from freshman Brendan Trapper including an old-fashioned 3-point play to hold a 26-11 edge with under nine minutes remaining in the opening half. 

As the period wore on, the momentum began to shift as RIT scored nine of the game's next 11 points to pull to within eight, 28-20.  The Tigers continued to push the tempo and would cut Fisher's hold to just two points before the home team regrouped and closed out the half with an 8-0 run to take a 41-31 cushion into the break.

As the second half got underway, Fisher would extend its advantage as the Cardinals orchestrated a 7-2 burst to hold a 15-point margin, 48-33.  From there, RIT would temporarily halt Fisher's momentum with a lay-up, but the break did little to slow the Cardinals as the home team poured in nine of the next 11 points to build a 21-point advantage, 57-36.

The lead would eventually balloon to 22 points for head coach Mike Grosodonia II's squad before the Tigers cut the gap to 14 points with 2:16 remaining.  The damage, however, was done as Fisher secured the win in non-conference play.

Robinson led all scorers with 24 points on 10-of-15 shooting including four from distance.  Matt Asenjo, who was also named to the All-Tournament Team, was 4-for-4 from the floor with 12 points to go along with five assists while freshman Trapper finished with a career-high 15 points and six rebounds in the win.  Mark Valeriani chipped in with nine points while James Leone had six points.

The Cardinals will enjoy a brief hiatus for the holiday break before returning to action at 8 p.m. on Saturday, December 29th when they host Alfred State in the opening round of the Woodcliff Hotel and Spa Tournament inside Manning and Napier Varsity Gymnasium.