OSWEGO, NY — Men’s Basketball secured the victory over Geneseo 64-42 Friday night. The Lakers got their 12th conference win of the season as Oswego was only up seven points heading into the second half. The Lakers would extend their lead in the next half as the group tallied 37 points. Jeremiah Sparks would net 15 points in his 32 minutes played as the freshman made five field goals and one three pointer. Brandon Gartland would also net 13 points as the senior dropped three three pointers.
Oswego remains in fourth place in the SUNYAC standings with only one game remaining. The Lakers have a chance to move into third but Oswego cannot fall as Cortland is already locked into the fifth seed. Brockport, currently locked into the number one spot, travels into the Marano Campus Center Saturday for the last game of the regular season. Todays game is also Senior Day as tip off is set for 4 p.m. in the Max Ziel Gym.
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Men’s basketball season comes to an end in wire to wire matchup
MARIETTA O.H. — A historic season by the Oswego State men’s basketball team came to end Friday night in the Sweet Sixteen of the NCAA Division 3 tournament. After winning the first two rounds in Swarthmore, the team was sent to Marietta, Ohio to take on the the Marietta College Pioneers, the hosts of the new pod. A matchup between two top 25 ranked teams, Marietta number two and Oswego number 17, was set to be a tough one for both sides.
The Lakers got on the board first from an Ahkee Anderson three. The Lakers were the ones hitting their shots early, and just five minutes in they held an 8-2 lead. It didn’t take Marietta long to find their stride and by the ten minute mark it was only a 16-15 lead for Oswego. The teams went back and forth draining baskets, and Marietta grabbed their first lead of the game, 22-21, just under the eight minute mark. The Pioneers would then went on a 14-6 run over the next five minutes to grab a nine point lead. The Lakers closed the lead to four with 36 second to go on a Jeremiah Sparks three, but Marietta’s Lukas Isaly hit a three with six second to go to give the Pioneers a seven point lead, 43-36, into the halftime break. Oswego came out of the locker rooms hot. A Devin Green three got the half started, and they grabbed a 47-46 lead with 15 minutes remaining. The Lakers kept pushing and just a minute and a half later they led 56-47, a 20-4 run coming out of the half. Marietta went on a run of their own, 11-2, to tie the game at 58, with eight minutes to play, and then grabbed a 64-61 lead on a Tim Kreeger layup and one with six minutes in the game. Devin Green hit a three with five to go to give Oswego their final lead of the game, 66-65. Marietta kept hitting their shots, and extended the lead to 10, 78-68, with a 1:48 to go. The Lakers got as close as five on three straight free throw makes from Green, 80-75, but the Pioneers weren’t letting the lead slip away and they moved on the Elite Eight 89-81. Devin Green was the Laker’s leader with 22 points tying his season high, he was 5-10 from three and 7-13 overall. Jeremiah Sparks added 19 points and Ahkee Anderson had 12 to go with six assists. Jamal Achille and Brendon Mulson had seven and six rebounds respectively to lead the team. Marietta’s Jason Ellis had had 28 points, with Lukas Isaly and Tim Kreeger both contributing 17. Marietta moves on to take on Christopher Newport University in the Elite Eight.
Oswego’s season comes to an end with a record of 27-3, a school record for wins in a season. They clinched their eighth SUNYAC Championship and fifth since the 2011-12 season. They claimed their sixth appearance in the NCAA tournament, and their third sweet sixteen appearance, the farthest the team has ever gotten (2016, 2019). Devin Green was the Lakers overall scoring leader at 12.2 points per game, with Jeremiah Sparks (11.8) and Julien Crittendon (10.5) the other to Lakers above 10 ppg. Green (5.7), Sparks (5.5), Brendon Mulson (5.5), and Christian Simmons (5.3) all averaged over five rebounds per games, with Jamal Achille averaging 4.4. Ahkee Anderson ran the point for Oswego most of the season and he led the team in assists per game at 3.0 as a freshman, also contributing 8.4 points. The Lakers are seeing seven seniors graduate, Forward Brendon Mulson, Forward Christian Simmons, Guard Eric Sanfilippo, Forward Jordan Brown, Forward Hunter Cole, Guard Julien Crittendon, and Center Louis Fedullo.
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Men’s basketball: SUNYAC preview
OSWEGO N.Y. — The Oswego State men’s basketball completed their season last weekend. One of the most dominant season’s in program history saw them lose only two games all season and only one in conference play. Their first loss came to Nazareth on November 23 and their second coming February 11 to New Paltz. Between the two losses, seventeen straight wins. They finished the season ranked seventeenth in the country, at their highest they were ranked fourteenth. They finished with a record of 23-2, 17-1 in conference play.
On Friday, they are set to play the New Paltz Hawks once more. The two teams play for the third time this season, and the for the second in the Max Ziel Gymnasium. The first time the two sides met was January 29 in Oswego, The Lakers came out victorious 82-53. Devin Green led the Lakers that day with thirteen points, including 4-7 from three. Kaleb Cook and Christian Simmons both contributed eleven. The second matchup was just two weeks ago, this time in New Paltz. In a game that most thought Oswego would walk away with just as they had almost every other game this season, New Paltz shocked Oswego and grabbed a one point victory. Jeremiah Sparks led all Lakers that night with fifteen points. With a rematch on the cards, and both teams looking to win the season series, the winner of the final matchup gets to move on to the SUNYAC Final, to play the winner of Brockport and Oneonta.
The Lakers were led this season by Sophomore guard Jeremiah Sparks and Junior guard Devin Green, both averaging 11.4 points per game. Julien Crittendon and Christian Simmons were the only other two Lakers to average over 10 points per game, 11.0 and 10.4 respectively. Devin Green was the fourth best three point shooter in the country this year, hitting threes at a 47.45% clip. Sparks and Green were also the teams rebounding leaders at 5.8 rebounds per game each, with Brendon Mulson right behind 5.7. What made Oswego stand out this year, was their team defense. Oswego allowed a measly 59.4 points against per game, the fourth best defense in the nation. They also held teams to a 37.2 field goal percentage, the fifth lowest in the nation.
The Lakers, led by head coach Jason Leone, are looking to win the tournament and get a bid to the NCAA tournament. The winner of Friday’s matchups will play in the SUNYAC championship game on Saturday. All games are being held at SUNY Oswego. WTOP10 will have coverage of all three playoff games, and any potential NCAA games played at Oswego.
PHOTO COURTESY OF MATT HERNANDEZ, WTOP10 PHOTOGRAPHY DEPARTMENT
SUNYAC BRACKET COURTESY OF SUNYAC WEBSITE
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Oswego Men’s Hockey Whiteout Game Preview versus Plattsburgh
OSWEGO — Friday night at the Marano Campus Center will feature the beginning of Men’s Hockey annual Whiteout Weekend as they host rivals SUNY Plattsburgh. The Lakers look to continue their Whiteout success after shutting out the Cardinals last year. Plattsburgh comes into the match up after dropping their first two games against SUNYAC opponents Brockport and Geneseo (3). The Lakers however gained their first conference win against Cortland in their home opener this past Friday. Max Novick and Mitch Emerson were huge producers for Oswego, both putting up three points. Laker fans can get tickets at the SUNY Oswego box office or watch live at WTOP 10 starting at 6 p.m. for the pregame show. Puck drop will at 7 p.m. in front of an expected sellout crowd.
