The Oswego State men's basketball team dropped a back-and-forth affair 75-72 to Potsdam in Max Ziel Gymnasium on Friday night. With the loss, the Lakers fall to .500 overall (7-7) but remain one game above that mark in conference action (4-3). Potsdam is now 8-6, 3-4.
Oswego came out with a slow start that allowed the Bears to gain what would be its largest lead of the game (9) just seven minutes into the contest. Trailing by five, 42-37, at the half, the Lakers chipped away at the Potsdam advantage early in the second stanza. Oswego grabbed a lead a little more than halfway through the period and extended the edge to five with 7:32 remaining. Hot shooting by Potsdam down the stretch, including a prayer 3-pointer from deep as the shot clock expired with 25 seconds left to play, was too much for the Lakers to overcome. Oswego called its final timeout with 19 seconds left and a chance to tie with a trey, but the Lakers were unable to find a good look as a Ferebee heave attempt missed to the left as the buzzer sounded.
Four Lakers finished in double digits, paced by senior Ian Schupp's 23 points on 8-for-15 shooting from the field. Of his eight made field-goals, three came from beyond the arc on just nine attempts. Next in the scoring column was Josh Ivey, who cashed in a double-double with 15 points and a game-high 13 rebounds. Senior Jamir Ferebee registered 14 points in the outing while Brandan Gartland rounded out the double-figure scorers with 11.
It was a team effort on the glass, as Oswego help a plus-10 margin over Potsdam. Each of the eight Lakers that saw playing time on Friday collected at least two or more boards. Aiding Ivey's 13 were Schupp (15), Ferebee (4), Gartland (4), Liam Sanborn (3), Tim Marshall (3), Louis Avellino (3) and Tyler Pierre (2).
Ivey also turned in a team-high three assists while Schupp had a game-high two steals.
Oswego will continue SUNYAC action at 3 p.m. on Saturday when Plattsburgh comes to campus.
