Box Score Box Score

CLINTON, N.Y. – Sophomore guard/forward Matt Devine (Manalapan, N.J.) drained a career-high 24 points, as the State University of New York at New Paltz men's basketball team (2-0) cruised to an 83-67 win over Lehman College (0-2) on the first day of the Hamilton Tip-Off Tournament Friday evening at Scott Field House.

New Paltz will play the winner of tonight's 8 p.m. game between the University of Pittsburgh-Bradford and host Hamilton College tomorrow afternoon at 4 p.m. in the championship game. Lehman will contest the loser at 2 p.m. in the consolation tilt.

“It's great to have a chance to play for a championship,” head coach Dagan Nelson said. “It's been a long time since a New Paltz men's basketball team has won any type of championship. We have a great opportunity tomorrow to do that. It was a total team win this evening. Matt Devine played great, but it was truly a total team victory. We will be looking for the same effort out of our guys tomorrow.”

Both teams traded the lead back and forth for the first 10 minutes of the contest, and New Paltz went on a 5-0 run to go up 26-20 with 3:44 remaining in the first half. The Lightning, however, would storm back, as Samuel Batista hit threes on back-to-back possessions to bring the tally within two at 28-26. The Hawks entered the locker room with an uncomfortable two-point lead, holding the upper hand over their foes, 30-28.

Early in the second half, the blue and orange came to life again, going on an 11-2 run to mount a sizeable advantage. Lehman answered with a 7-0 run to pull within four, but the Hawks broke the game open with a 12-0 tear starting at around the 12:30 mark. The Lightning would not recover from that offensive explosion, and New Paltz would ride it out the remainder of the contest.

The Hawks shot 33-for-57 from the floor (57.9 percent) on the contest, which included their efficient second half of 20-for-29 shooting (69.0 percent). The New Paltz defense forced the Lightning to turn the ball over 24 times.

Devine proved effective both on the attack and on the glass. He shot 10-of-15 from the field and went 3-for-5 at the line, boasting the game-high total of 24 points, 18 of which came in the second half. In addition, Devine pulled down a game-high 12 boards, which is also a career-high for the sophomore co-captain out of Manalapan, N.J. Junior guard Shereef Taylor (Hyde Park, N.Y.) chipped in 13 points, while junior guard Harris Wichard (Merrick, N.Y.) also reached double figures with 10. Taylor added impressive totals in assists (5) and steals (4), both of which were team-highs.

For Lehman, Jonathan DeJesus used an 8-for-12 performance at the charity stripe to bolster a team-high 22 points. DeJesus also was active on the glass, collecting 11 caroms. Alain De la Cruz and Batista also stuffed the total point column with 16 and 10, respectively. De la Cruz added a game-high six assists.

Notes (courtesy of Mike Epstein): 

• Devine continued his strong play with 24 points. He has a total of 41 points in the first two games of the season, leading all players on the team
• Taylor has continued to show his athleticism, snatching 8 steals in the first games
• Wichard, an offensive threat from long range, leads the team with 5 three pointers this season