PITTSFORD, N.Y. – The St. John Fisher College men's basketball team suffered its first setback in Empire 8 play on Friday as the Cardinals fell to visiting Utica College, 63-56, inside Manning and Napier Varsity Gymnasium on Bobby Wanzer Court. With the defeat, Fisher slipped to 9-4 on the year and 3-1 in league play while the Pioneers improved to 9-2 on the season and 3-0 against conference opposition.
Brendan Trapper scored a team-high 14 points to go along with four rebounds in the loss while
Daniel Cook added a double-double with 13 points and 11 boards.
Ian Duncan chipped in with 12 points and four rebounds while
Sean Williams finished with eight points, three rebounds, six assists and four steals.
After trailing by seven at the break, Fisher cut the gap to five with a pair of free throws from Trapper, but the Pioneers countered with a pair of 3-pointers on the other end to open up their largest lead of the game, 39-30.
Trailing by nine, Fisher found a rhythm and scored seven unanswered points as part of a 9-3 burst that pulled the Cardinals to within three points, 42-39, with 11 minutes still showing on the clock.
As the half wore on, both teams traded baskets down the stretch before the Pioneers seized the momentum with a 10-2 run to claim a 56-46 advantage with under five minutes left to play.
Facing an uphill climb with time working against it, Fisher pushed the pace and cut the gap to five points following a fast-break dunk from Trapper to pull to within 58-53. From there, the Cardinals would put the Pioneers at the free throw line where they built their lead back up eight with 56 seconds on the clock.
Down by eight, Fisher moved the ball across the timeline and scored a bucket inside before calling a timeout to set its defense. Utica looked to inbound the ball, but quickly turned it over with Williams coming up with the loose ball. With a fresh shot clock and time wearing thin, Fisher heaved a 3-pointer, but the attempt missed its mark as Utica corralled the rebound and secured the road win.
The Cardinals will look to get back to their winning ways at 4 p.m. on Saturday when they travel to Elmira to take on the Soaring Eagles in another Empire 8 clash.
