Fredonia, NY — The State University of New York at New Paltz men's basketball team took the lead early and never looked back in its road match against Fredonia State in Steele Hall Friday. The Hawks led for more than 36 minutes of the 40 minute game, resulting in a 79-59 win over the Blue Devils.

Fredonia State (2-12 overall, 1-6 SUNYAC) had trouble finding the bottom of the net, shooting just 32.7 percent from the field (17-52). The story was different for victorious SUNY New Paltz (8-7, 3-5), who shot 53.8 percent from the field (28-52) en route to the in-conference win.

The Hawks controlled the paint in the first half, with 24 of their 43 first-half points coming from the key. Their passing was a big part of the win, with 37 of their total points coming off assists.

"Our strategy was to pound the ball down most of the game and get to the rim," SUNY New Paltz coach Keith Kenney said. "I think we were patient and ran our offense well and that is what really helped us win."

Fredonia's mindset was different, as it tried to beat the Hawks from the perimeter, taking 14 shots from deep in the first half, draining four. The Blue Devils' offensive strategy prompted Kenney to switch from a man-to-man defense to a 3-2 zone late in the first half.

A key to the SUNY New Paltz win was its domination on the glass, as it brought down 39 total boards compared to just 19 by the Fredonia.

Turnovers plagued both squads, with the Hawks losing the ball 19 times to the Blue Devils 11. "We need to clean up our turnovers before tomorrow's game," Kenney said.

SUNY New Paltz took more advantage off of the miscues than Fredonia however, scoring 19 points off of their turnovers.

Three Hawks starred in the win, with Scott Reisert, Jake Passaretti, and Tristan Wissemann all reaching double digits. Reisert used his height down low, shooting 9-for-12 from the field for a game-high 19 points to go along with seven rebounds. Passaretti made his presence known on both sides of the floor, scoring 17 points on 6-for-7 shooting, including 3-for-3 from deep, as well as poking the ball loose on a Fredonia fast-break early in the second half. Wissemann was routinely able to drive inside and get to the free throw line. Nine of his 17 points were earned on the foul line.

The Blue Devils' leading scorer was Tyler Roberts, who finished with 12 points in 19 minutes.

SUNY New Paltz will look to ride the momentum from Friday's win into Buffalo State Saturday. They will take on the Bengals at 2 p.m.