Albany, NY – The Sage Colleges' men's basketball team hosted the Dolphins of the College of Mt. St. Vincent in the Skyline Conference opener for both teams. After holding a 44-28 lead at the break, Sage would finish the night with a 101-65 win. The Gators improve to 4-2 overall and 1-0 in the Skyline Conference, while the CMSV drops to 1-4 overall and 0-1 in the league.
The 101 points by Sage marks the fourth time this season the Gators have surpassed the 90 point plateau, while also marking the second straight 100 plus effort for Sage's offense.
Senior forward Mason Horne (Albany, NY/La Salle Institute) and senior guard Ryan La Belle (East Berne, NY/Berne-Knox-Westerlo) each paced the Gators with 10 first half points. By night's end, Horne and LaBelle each finished with 16 points. Graduate student Jeff Stopera (Scotia, NY/Scotia Glenville) added 10 points with four assists, while Horne handed out five assists in the action. Junior center Jacob Sopchak (Rhinebeck, NY/Rhinebeck) added 11 points with seven rebounds and three blocked shots in the start for the Gators.
For the night, Sage held a 52-44 edge on the boards, while going to the free throw line 51 times.
CMSV's senior forward Brandon Serrano (Hempstead, NY/St. Dominic) led the first half of play with 12 points and was held scoreless in the second half of the game. Freshman center Greg Kopcienski (Mount Sinai, NY/Mount Sinai) added 12 points before fouling out of the contest for the Dolphins. Junior forward Anthony Woods (West Palm, Beach, FL/Royal Palm) finished with 15 points and six rebounds for the Dolphins.
Sage will return to action on December 4 hosting the Knights of Mt. St. Mary College in Kahl Gym at 7 p.m., while the College of Mt. St. Vincent is back in action on December 4 hosting Purchase College at 7 p.m.