Courtesy of Plattsburgh Sports Information Department
WILLIAMSTOWN, MA. – The Plattsburgh State men's basketball team ended their season on Friday in the first round of the NCAA Division III Tournament with a 73-65 loss to Gwynedd Mercy inside Chandler Gymnasium at Williams College.
The Cardinals final record for the 2018-19 season is 20-7 while the Griffins move to 20-8 and have advanced to the second round.
Gwynedd Mercy shot 53.8% in three-pointers and 78.6% in free throws while Plattsburgh State was 33.3% in three-pointers and 50% in free throws.
Senior guard Brandon Johnson (Greenburgh, N.Y./Woodlands) led the Cardinals with 17 points, senior forward Isaiah Hill (Brooklyn, N.Y./HS for Dual Language and Asian Studies) had 15 points and senior guard/forward Chris Middleton (New York, N.Y./Cardinal Hayes) had 13 points.
Plattsburgh State out-rebounded Gwynedd Mercy 37-36 with senior forward Ian Howard (Queens, N.Y./Springfield Gardens) picking up a team high of 12 and senior forward Jonathan Patron (Huntington, N.Y. / Harborfields) having eight.
The first half was tied five times and the lead changed three times.
Plattsburgh State took a five-point edge with 16:22 on the clock after an old-fashioned three-pointer from Hill and a layup from Middleton.
The Griffins tied the game 14-14 with 13:08 left in the half.
Johnson made a three-pointer and Gwynedd Mercy tied it 17-17 with a three of their own and after a layup they took a two-point lead.
Hill put in a layup to tie it 19-19 but the Griffins put in a three-pointer and a layup for a five-point cushion.
With 5:33 remaining, the Cardinals were within one-point after a layup from junior forward Adam Jaquish (Moriah, N.Y./Moriah).
Gwynedd Mercy had an eight-point advantage with 2:53 left and a layup from Howard ended the half to put the Cardinals behind by six, 38-32.
The Griffins started the second half with a three-pointer and a free throw for a ten-point edge and took their largest lead of 14-points with 9:16 remaining in the game.
Two free throws from Howard and a layup from Middleton put the Cardinals within ten-points.
A jumper from Patron cut the lead to eight points with 6:27 on the clock.
Gwynedd Mercy extended their cushion back to 11-points with 3:33 remaining.
Hill put in back-to-back three-points to get Plattsburgh State within five-points with 2:54 remaining.
The Griffins made a three-pointer and made two free throws for a ten-point advantage with 56 seconds left.
Jaquish ended the game with two free throws to cut the loss to eight points.
This marks the end for the Cardinals six seniors, five of which are four-year members of the team and starts this season. This class recorded four winning seasons with a 78-30 record. They made three NCAA DIII tournament appearances, one Sweet Sixteen, three SUNYAC tournament appearances and won one SUNYAC Championship.
