Men's Basketball Defeats Bryant & Stratton College- Rochester, 69-66

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| 1/20/2023 9:30 AM | Kevin Turi, Sports Information Coordinator

Syracuse, NY- 

The Bryant & Stratton College- Syracuse Men's Basketball team defeated Bryant & Stratton College- Rochester 69-66 on Thursday night.  The victory for the Bobcats improves their overall record to 9-4 on the season.

How it Happened:

Despite the few weeks without any game action in the middle portion of the season, the Bryant & Stratton College- Syracuse Men's Basketball team showed no signs of rust early in their game on Thursday night.  All five starters chipped in the scoring effort early on and helped open up a 15-4 lead over the first 5 minutes of the game.  Strong starts from Moses Hughes and Jameel Abdallah propelled the Bobcats ahead early in the first half.  The key player in the final 10 minutes of the first half for the Bobcats was Vincent Frenza.  Frenza came in off the bench with energy and an aggressiveness that started to show in games before the mid-season break.  He lead the Bobcats in scoring in the first half with 9 points off the bench and helped the team open up a 40-26 lead going into the break.

The story of the second half was quite different than the dominance displayed by the Bobcats in the first half.  Credit to Bryant & Stratton College- Rochester for their effort and unwillingness to quit down by such a large margin early.  Rochester would start the second half on a 13-2 run and set the stage for a great finish over the course of the last 10 minutes. 

Once again, the Bobcats relied heavily on their bench in crucial moments of this game and were lead by Frenza and Antonio Scott.  Timely baskets and a calming presence with the ball in their hands, the two combined for 16 of the Bobcats 29 second half points.  Strong play on the defensive glass from Josue Oreste and Chamarri Baskerville making his season debut were pivotal in the Bobcats finishing defensive possessions and the game down the stretch.  The Bobcats would hold on to win this one 69-66 over visitng Bryant & Stratton College- Rochester.

"I am really proud of our guys for the way that they responded to adversity in the second half," said Head Coach Clay Gagen-Sherman following the victory.  "The first game after the mid-season break is always so difficult to try to find a rhythm and maintain it over the course of the game.  I think we did a great job of that early, but the start of the second half is a great indication of our group getting back into playing games.  With that being said, it is always a great feeling when you can learn a lesson and still win the game, so I am pleased with the overall performance and result."

Next Game:

The Bobcats will be on the road this Sunday, January 22nd at 2pm for a matchup with Washington Adventist University.  The two teams played earlier in the season with the Shock edging the Bobcats by 1-point making this game a must-watch matchup!

Be sure to follow @bscbobcatssyr on all of our social media platforms for updates and more on the 2022-23 Bryant & Stratton College- Syracuse Men's Basketball season!