NOT SO SWEET END IN ROUND OF 16
The Oswego State men's basketball team had its season come to close in a raucous Max Ziel Gymnasium environment 66-65 to The College of Wooster in the NCAA Division III Championship on Friday night.
OSWEGO, N.Y. – The Oswego State men's basketball team had its season come to close in a raucous Max Ziel Gymnasium environment 66-65 to The College of Wooster in the NCAA Division III Championship on Friday night.
A foul call put the Fighting Scots' Dan Fanelly at the line trailing Oswego 65-64 with 4.8 seconds remaining. Fanelly made both of his free throws to regain an advantage and Brian Sortino's last effort ended with a collision with a Wooster player without the sound of a whistle.
Oswego trailed for the better part of 15 minutes in the final half, until the Lakers strung together a 9-0 over 3:26 to take its first lead of the period, 63-61, with 1:17 to play. That run was spurred by a Mark Candelario jump hook followed by a corner 3-pointer from Demetrius Mitchell. Sortino knocked down a jumper next and then the spurt was capped by an easy Candelario layup off a great dish from Sortino.
Fanelly then completed a traditional 3-point play to give the Scots the edge back with 41 seconds on the clock. Sortino was fouled heading to the basket the next time down the floor and drained both to put the home team ahead 65-64 with 17 seconds to go.
In the first half, Wooster jumped out to an early advantage, getting its largest of the contest at 17-9 before Oswego began closing the gap. The Lakers used a 13-4 span over 6:29 to register their first lead of the game with 8:26 left in the first half. Oswego held an edge for the majority of the next seven minutes before the Scots were able to gather a 39-35 lead heading to the locker room at half.
Sortino paced the Lakers with 23 points, going an impressive 13-for-14 from the charity stripe. Syracuse native Demetrius Mitchell tied a career-high with 13 points to be Oswego's second-highest scorer. Also aiding in the effort was Mark Candelario, who recorded his second double-double of the year with 10 points and a game-high 12 rebounds.
Oswego held a plus-3 margin on the glass, outrebounding the Scots 34-31. As a team, the Lakers shot 81.0% from the free-throw line and 44.0% from the floor.
Oswego's furthest run in the postseason ends with a 22-9 mark while Wooster improves to 24-7. Wooster advances to face Christopher Newport University, who beat Keene State College 74-62 in the early game, at 7 p.m. on Saturday in Max Ziel Gymnasium.
