ALBANY, N.Y. – Russell Sage College never trailed in tonight's 78-67 Empire 8 Conference victory vs. Houghton. The Gators (11-10/5-7 E8), which led by as many as 22, opened up the contest on a 24-7 run.
Freshman guard Noah Girard (Glens Falls, NY/Glens Falls) netted a career-high 18 points in tonight's home win. The rookie (above) was one of three Gators in double figures. Senior guard Jalon Borders (Bartow, FL/Bartow), who became just the fourth RSC player to score 1,000 career points earlier this month, added 14 points on 50% shooting, while freshman forward Todd Williamson (Schenectady, NY/Notre Dame Bishop Gibbons) equaled a career-high with 14 points. Senior forward/center Stuart Phair (Canberra, Australia/Tyler Christian School) contributed eight points on 4-of-5 shooting, nine rebounds, and four blocks.
Houghton (3-19/3-10 E8) was paced by sophomore forward Josh Jordan with 16 points.
The Gators shot 54.5% from the field in the opening half to head into the locker room up 41-22. For the game, RSC made 44.4% of its field goals, while holding the visiting Highlanders to 17.6% shooting from beyond the arc.
Looking ahead, the Gators host Alfred tomorrow at 4:00 pm. Before the E8 contest, the athletic department will recognize eight players: senior guard Amani Cummings (Brooklyn, NY/Transit Tech), senior guard Ryan Long (Averill Park, NY/Averill Park), senior guard Tyler Mitchell (Bronx, NY/All Hallows), Borders, senior forward Jason Geronimo (Orlando, FL/Colonial), Phair, senior forward/center Fethener Aime (Palm Coast, FL/Flagler Palm Coast), and forward/center Josh Gonzalez (Albany, NY/Canajoharie), a grad student, for their contributions to the men's basketball program.
Notes: Borders became just the fourth Gator to score his 1,000th career point on Feb. 6 at St. John Fisher…The two-time first-team All-Conference pick sits third in program records with 1,026 career points…Phair, who currently ranks second in program records for career blocks with 100, and Geronimo are captains on the year's team…The pair both rank in the top eight on the program's career rebounding chart.
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