SAINTS CLINCH PLAYOFF BERTH WITH WIN OVER HOBART, 69-58

Feb. 15: The St. Lawrence men’s basketball team earned a spot in the Liberty League Tournament for the third consecutive year Friday night after defeating conference opponent Hobart College 69-58 in Burkman Gymnasium.

 

The Saints, who are currently in first place in the Liberty League, improved to 14-8 overall and 9-2 in the conference with the win. The Statesmen fell to 10-11 overall and 5-5 in the league.

 

The Statesmen kept the Saints off the scoreboard for the first 3:59 of the game while racking up six unanswered points while both teams attempted to solve the other’s defense. Neither team scored for close to four minutes before the Saints began a 14-1 run in the middle of the period to give them a 17-7 edge with 7:59 remaining.

 

The Scarlet and Brown were able to obtain a permanent double-digit lead in the last minutes of the period, earning as much as a 17-point lead, ending the half with a score of 34-18 in favor of the Saints.

 

The second half saw the Saints build upon their momentum from the first half, shooting 52-percent from the floor, while containing a tough Statesmen offense to only 36-percent. In the middle of the period, junior co-captain Richard Williams (Kingston, NY/Kingston) and junior Ben Augliano (Clayton, NY/Thousand Islands) both dunked the ball, bringing the crowd to its feet both times.

 

Hobart was able to put some pressure on the Saints in the final minutes of the contest, as they cut the Saints’ once 22-point lead in half, but it wasn’t enough as St. Lawrence emerged victorious with a 69-58 win.

 

Senior Tyler Shaver ( Ogdensburg, NY/Ogdensburg Free Academy) led the Saints with 14 points in only 19 minutes, while classmate Tyler Wright ( Teaneck, NJ/Paramus Catholic) also tallied in the double-digits, accumulating 12 points. Sophomore Josh Sharlow (Norwood, NY/Norwood-Norfolk) had an impressive defensive game, grabbing 11 boards while also adding nine points, four assists, and three steals.

 

St. Lawrence will host Hamilton College, the second place team in the Liberty League, Saturday afternoon in Burkman Gym. Tip-off is scheduled for 4:00pm.