The State University of New York at New Paltz split its most recent home conference weekend, earning its first league win Jan. 24 against Buffalo State. The Hawks are eying win number two Saturday when they host SUNY Oneonta in the Hawk Center.
 
SUNY New Paltz (5-11 overall, 1-8 SUNYAC) suffered a loss when it last faced the Red Dragons earlier in the year after a slow first-half start. The Hawks were out-scored 44-29 in the opening 20 minutes, but climbed back in following halftime. After trailing by more than 21 in the game, the Hawks fought to get within five with 30 seconds remaining. The rally was a little too late, however, as the hosts put the game away in the last half minute at the foul line to secure the, 84-76 outcome.
 
"We definitely learned how to defend better," said SUNY New Paltz senior forward Nick Arthur. "We watched some film on them when we played and we weren't as aggressive as we should have been, but this game I think it is going to be a lot different." 
The Hawks had lost five-straight since that game, but broke up the slump against the Bengals. A win over Oneonta would help them get out of the bottom of the league standings and closer to the sixth seed in the State University of New York Athletic Conference (SUNYAC) Tournament.
 
The Red Dragons, meanwhile, are sitting atop the SUNYAC at 8-1 in conference. Their lone loss came against The College at Brockport Jan. 17, but they've gone 11-1 in their last 12 games, winning four-straight.
 
Senior guard Kevin Mackin leads Oneonta with 15.8 points per game, while shooting 40.2 percent from the field and 39 percent from 3-point range. Senior guard Harrison Deegan and junior guard Joseph Bull follow offensively, registering 13.6 and 12.2 points per game, respectively. Deegan is one of the most efficient shooters, hitting nearly 52 percent of his attempts from the field, but has connected on 35 percent from the perimeter. He pulls down nearly seven rebounds, and a team-best 4.3 assists and 1.4 steals per game. Bull leads the team on the glass, averaging about nine boards a contest to go along with 3.6 assists per game.
 
The Red Dragons put up about 81 points per game, while conceding 71 against. They've held their opposition to about 41 percent from the field and 32 percent from 3-point land. They play a decently clean game, committing just 11 turnovers a night, while forcing about 14 turnovers per game.
 
"Some important keys, do better on ball screens -- coach has been preaching that this week [and] we had to work on hedging. They have some really good shooters. We have to watch our for those guys," Arthur said. "Secondly, we just have to play hard every time. No plays off and third thing is to play hard every second of the game – Mamba mentality."
 
SUNY New Paltz entered last weekend with its most efficient offensive performance of 2020 against the Bengals, shooting 53 percent from the field and 54 percent (12-22) from behind the arc. It had four players reach double-figure points, led by senior Tristan Wissemann who had a team-high 25 points on a 9-for-15 shooting performance. Senior Scott Reisert followed with 18 points and 10 rebounds in the win.
 
The Hawks opened up their next game hot, taking the momentum of Friday nights victory, but couldn't sustain their momentum for the entirety of the game. After opening up on a 14-0 run, Fredonia came back to trim the lead down to five at the half and then began widening its cushion in the second period after a 11-0 run midway through. Ultimately, SUNY New Paltz suffered a 86-72 defeat. 
 
"I think on that Friday game we really came over adversity," Arthur said. "Even though the game got tied up 54-54, we fought back and never gave up. I think with the second game on Saturday, that same adversity happened and we just weren't able to fight back, but I think this Saturday will be a lot different."
 
The Hawks are set to face the Red Dragons Saturday in the Hawk Center at 4 p.m.

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