The State University of New York at New Paltz men's basketball team is riding a two-game winning streak into its first State University of New York at New Paltz Athletic Conference (SUNYAC) game. Confident with the solid start, the Hawks (2-1 overall) are looking for some redemption against Plattsburgh State and SUNY Potsdam with both teams earning wins over them a season ago.

"We have an upcoming game against a nationally ranked team in Plattsburgh and my mindset on it is that we really have to get after it and really compete against this team," said SUNY New Paltz freshman forward Isaiah Bien-Aise. "They really think it is going to be a breeze going against [us], and we just got to give something right back to them." 

The defending SUNYAC champion Cardinals are ranked 13th in the country following their 4-0 overall start. They've earned wins over Clarkson University, Skidmore College, SUNY Canton and St. Lawrence University, averaging 92 points per game, while allowing just 76.3 points against.

"I love competition, so when I go against a bigger team I feel like now is the time to shut them down, because they feel like they are so much better than us," Bien-Aise said. "All I know is that we need to attack and have an aggressive mode… We have to give it our all, 40 minutes throughout the game."

Jonathan Patron and Brandon Johnson are each averaging 20-plus points per game for Plattsburgh State. Patron leads the team with 22.3 points, 9.3 rebounds and 2.8 assists through four games, while shooting 48.5 percent from the field. Johnson is averaging 20.3 points, while shooting 52.6 percent from the field and adding three rebounds and 4.5 assists a contest.

"I'm hearing they have a pretty good squad. They go deep into their bench and we have to come in and be ready to fight," said Hawks freshman Brandon Scott on the Cardinals. "We did get a very good scouting report from our coaches and we need to recognize the players on the floor and we need to communicate as a team."

SUNY Potsdam heads into the weekend 2-3 overall, but is coming off a 77-66 victory over Clarkson Nov. 27. Dante Langley leads the team with 18.2 points and six rebounds per game. Nosa Onabor follows averaging 14.8 points and 3.3 rebounds per game. 
Both the Cardinals and Bears got the best out of the Hawks last season. Plattsburgh State earned 102-69 and 100-71 victories over SUNY New Paltz, while SUNY Potsdam came away with tight 75-73 and 68-56 victories.

The Hawks, meanwhile, are hoping to extend their winning streak following back-to-back home victories over SUNY Maritime and SUNY Delhi. SUNY New Paltz was in control for the majority of both outings, proving to be the better team, but had trouble putting the game away early and allowed both contests to get closer than intended. Although it'll take the win, the Hawks know moving forward they will have to put their foot on the gas when they gain momentum.

"The previous two home games we had we were fortunate to get the dub, which means we were successful enough to compete and fulfill our tasks," Bien-Aise said. "We definitely discussed finishing the game strongly, because in situations going against Plattsburgh and Potsdam that won't be OK to do so, because we can end up losing the game. So it is essential that we do keep our foot on the gas and perform what we need to do."

Scott Reisert leads SUNY New Paltz with 15 points and 6.3 rebounds per game, while shooting 47.1 percent from the field. Tristan Wissemann follows with 14 points per game, shooting 50 percent from the floor. As a team, the Hawks are averaging 80 points per game, while allowing 82.3 points against and are shooting about 43 percent from the field.

Through three games, SUNY New Paltz has gotten solid contributions from a number of players. Senior Paddy Parr leads the team with nearly 10 rebounds per game, while sophomore Jake Passaretti leads the group in assists, with about seven per contest. Freshmen Bien-Aise and Scott have both seem ample time on the floor early, averaging around 13 and eight minutes per game, respectively.

The Hawks are prepared to give both teams a fight Friday and Saturday, and are confident they can walk out with two victories if they play their game.

"We've been working on our defense, playing the whole shot clock and we have to work on playing the whole game, that's pretty much it," Scott said. "We can do what we put our minds to and as long as we stick together as a team, we can be unstoppable."

SUNY New Paltz is set to play Plattsburgh State at 7:30 p.m. Friday and SUNY Potsdam Saturday at 4 p.m.

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