Men's Basketball | 2/23/2023 1:41:00 PM
PITTSFORD, NY – The St. John Fisher University men's basketball team heads into Empire 8 Championship weekend as the no. 4 seed. After defeating no. 5 Hartwick College Tuesday night, they are set to compete against no. 1 seed Utica University on Friday, February 24 at 5:30 pm.
Meetings this Season
The Cardinals first saw the Pioneers on Jan. 3 in Utica, NY. Daniel Cook finished this match up leading the team with 19 points, seven rebounds and three assists. Fisher took defeat by a score of 75-69. The teams faced off once again at home on Feb. 7. Utica led going into halftime by one, but the Cardinals came out on top after the final 20 minutes by a score of 65-63. Fisher gave Utica their first and only conference loss of the season. Cook ended with 26 points and Ryan Gentile with 13 to lead their team to victory.
Players to Watch
In the Cardinals victory over Hartwick in the quarterfinals on Tuesday night, Cook, Gentile and Connor Recore were key contributors to the team's success and win. Cook led with 18 points, six rebounds, four assists and two steals. He went 5-for-7 on field goals and 7-for-8 in free throw attempts. Recore led the team with 10 rebounds on the night; he added 16 points, two blocks, one steal and one assist. He went 6-for-6 from the free throw line. Gentile finished with 14 points, two rebounds, two assists and three steals. The team will look for these three key players to lead the Cardinals in this upcoming weekend's Empire 8 Championship tournament match ups.
Looking Ahead
After the Cardinals and Pioneers compete on Friday night, the no. 2 seed Nazareth and no. 3 seed Alfred will match up. The winners of the two games will compete on Saturday, Feb. 25 at 3pm for the Empire 8 Championship.
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