Box Score SALEM, Va. – The State University of New York at New Paltz men's basketball team ended its trip to Virginia with a win, as the Hawks defeated Eastern University, 76-62, in the consolation game of the Cregger Classic hosted by Roanoke College at the C. Homer Bast Center on Saturday afternoon.
New Paltz compiled a 1-1 record at the Cregger Classic, while Eastern went 0-2. Swarthmore College topped Roanoke, 81-79, in double overtime in the championship game, which was also played on Saturday. As a result of his performance across both games, junior forward
Kevin Roach (Levittown, N.Y./MacArthur) was named to the All-Tournament Team.
New Paltz came away with the win due largely to efficient shooting and superior rebounding ability. The Hawks shot 52.5 percent (31-of-59) from the floor on the afternoon, and they outgained the Eagles, 45-31, on the glass. Both teams applied defensive pressure in the contest, with the two sides combining for 48 turnovers.
The Hawks rise to 3-6 overall with the win and has only State University of New York Athletic Conference (SUNYAC) games remaining on their regular-season schedule, beginning with a 2 p.m. clash at SUNY Cortland on Tuesday, Jan. 6. The Eagles drop to 3-8 with the loss and visit Penn State Brandywine next on Wednesday, Jan. 7, at 8 p.m.
Though Eastern drew close to New Paltz within stretches of the game, the Eagles led just once all afternoon, which occurred in the first half.
New Paltz came out of the gates hot, jumping out to a 13-4 lead, but Eastern scored five straight points to cut the deficit down to four. The two teams traded baskets until a 5-0 Eagle surge gave Eastern its only lead of the game at 25-24 with 4:46 remaining in the first half. New Paltz closed the half on a 10-2 run, and a 3-pointer by sophomore guard
Eric Regenbogen (Wantagh, N.Y./Wantagh) with eight seconds to go in the period provided the halftime score of 34-27.
A 7-0 run that spanned just less than two minutes capped off a strong start for the Hawks in the second half, with Regenbogen accounting for five of those points. Eastern, however, responded with 12 straight points, and an old-fashioned 3-point play by freshman guard Anthony Concepcion pulled the Eagles within two points. After a made layup by junior guard/forward
Alex Perlman (Yorktown Heights, N.Y./Lakeland), junior guard Malcolm Garrison trimmed the deficit to one after a 3-pointer. After that trey, the Hawks regained the momentum, outscoring the Eagles, 23-10, down the stretch to pull out the victory.
Both benches were active throughout the game, with New Paltz's reserves outscoring Eastern's by a 27-22 margin.
Regenbogen shattered his previous career-high in points with a game-high 22 coming off the bench, knocking down 8-of-12 shots from the field and 2-of-3 shots from the free-throw line. Senior guard/forward
Taylor Sowah (Bronx, N.Y./Miller Place), Roach and senior guard/forward
R.J. Rosa (North Branch, N.Y./Sullivan West) all found their scoring touches as well, netting 15, 12 and 10 points, respectively. Sowah notched his fourth double-double of the season by adding 11 rebounds, and his stat line also included six assists, three steals and a block.
Eastern, which was held to 30.6 percent (19-of-62) shooting from the floor, received double-digit scoring performances from sophomore guard/forward Shaquan Turk (12) and sophomore guard/forward Tarek Hamzeh (10), with Hamzeh's total coming in 24 minutes coming off the bench. Shaquan completed the double-double with 11 rebounds, while Concepcion doled out four assists.
