Riverdale, NY-- The Sage Colleges' men's basketball team travelled to the College of Mt. St. Vincent on Thursday night for a Skyline Conference contest with the Dolphins. The Dolphins came from behind to rack up the 77-73 win overtime as James Zuccaro posted a game-high 35 points. The victory puts the Dolphins at 5-12 overall and 3-7 in the league, while Sage drops to 8-9 overall and 3-7 in the Skyline Conference.
Sage led 41-25 at the break as junior Mason Horne (Albany, NY/LaSalle Institute) had 13 first half points. He converted his first six field goal attempts for baskets and helped the team shoot 58.4% from the floor with a 66.7 three-point FG%.
CMSV fought back after the Gators held a commanding lead at the break and tied the action at 55-55 with 6:55 left to play. Down the stretch the game featured four ties before Sage took a 64-62 lead with 1:38 left to play as senior forward Matt Farbotko (Rouses Point, NY/Northeastern Clinton) hit a key layup. The Dolphins answered back as Shaquille Cunningham hit a jumper at 0:12 to tie the game for the fifth time and the game remained deadlocked at 64 all at the end of regulation.
Sage's senior center Ryan Sager (Stuyvesant, NY/Ichabod Crane) scored the first points of overtime with a dunk at 3:56 before James Zuccaro tied the game with a jumper at 3:12 and helped the team to a 68-66 lead with a jumper at 2:34. Zuccaro hit another basket at the 1:21 mark to put the Dolphins up by four points, 70-66. Up 72-66, Sager connected for another basket to pull Sage back within four points with 0:53 left in the first period of overtime. Sage was unable to tie the action as the CMSV went on to score the key conference win.
Senior guard Will Hennep (Wheatley Heights, NY/Half Hollow Hills West) finished with a career-high 11 points, while Horne had a team-best 17 points. Sager, Farbotko and junior guard Ryan LaBelle (East Berne, NY/Berne-Knox-Westerlo) all finished with 12 points. Sager had a double-double with his 12 rebounds.
Sage returns to action on Saturday, January 26 when they host Farmingdale State College in a 3 p.m. Skyline Conference game at the Kahl Gym.
