ALBANY, N.Y. – Senior guard Noah Girard (Glens Falls, NY/Glens Falls) became just the fifth Russell Sage College Men's Basketball player to surpass 1,000 career points in tonight's 81-72 Empire 8 Conference home win vs. Saint John Fisher.
It marked the second-straight time an RSC 1,000 point scorer reached the milestone against the Cardinals, with Jalon Borders '22 achieving the mark on February 6, 2022 in Pittsford.
"A heartfelt congratulations to Noah Girard on scoring his 1,000th point tonight," said Head Coach Brian Barnes. "Noah means so much to our program and we could not be more proud of him for such a significant accomplishment. Noah is as hard of a worker and as fierce a competitor as they come. We're so thankful for what he brings everyday to our program. Noah joins an elite group of Gators in the 1,000 point club and we were thrilled to be able to celebrate this milestone with a team win. Congratulations, Noah!"
The Gators (11-3/4-1 E8), now winners of eight of their last nine games, had a trio of players score in double figures.
Junior guard Trevor Green (Troy, NY/Lansingburgh/HVCC) topped RSC with 19 points on 6-of-12 shooting, four rebounds, and four assists.
Girard, the program's career leader for made three-pointers, added 18 points, 14 of which came after the intermission, on 6-of-12 shooting, while sophomore forward Avery Oduro-Dompreh (Elkridge, MD/Oakland Mills), who began the weekend leading the E8 in blocks per-game and ranked second in the Conference in rebounding, contributed 13 points of 6-of-8 shooting, six rebounds, and two blocks.
RSC kept the visiting Cardinals scoreless for more than six minutes in the first half to head into the locker room up 37-30. A 15-4 second period stretch spanning 3:31 early in the second half put the Gators up 16 with 14:43 remaining. SJFU only could get within eight from there.
Senior guard Eric Kegler paced the Cardinals (4-10/0-5 E8) with 22 points on 8-of-15 shooting, five rebounds, and four assists.
The Gators conclude a stretch of playing eight out of nine games at home on Saturday against Nazareth.
Gator Bites: The 2024-2025 season marks the 16th for Barnes at the helm of the Gators...RSC is in the midst of a stretch (Nov. 26-Jan. 18) where it plays eight out of nine games at home…The Gators entered the weekend leading the Empire 8 Conference by allowing 60.7 points per-game…RSC also boasted the top scoring margin in the E8 at 11.6…Nine returnees combine with seven newcomers on this year's edition…Girard and senior forward Todd Williamson (Schenectady, NY/Notre Dame Bishop Gibbons) were voted co-captains of this year's squad…Girard, the program's career leader for made three pointers, will finish his senior season ranked fifth in program records for career points, career assists, and career steals… Next on the list for the senior guard, now with 1,013 career points, is Marcus Patterson '17 at 1,021...Borders is third with 1,095 career points...Williamson was selected the E8 Player of the Week for the period ending Sunday, January 5…He registered team-highs of 16 points, 12 rebounds, and four assists in the home win vs. SUNY Cobleskill on January 3.
