The Morrisville State College men’s basketball season came to an end Saturday night, as they dropped the sectional round of the NCAA Division III Championship Tournament to host St. Mary’s College (27-3) by a 84-66 final in St. Mary’s City, Maryland.
The Mustangs (23-6) made a historical run through the NCAA tournament, reaching the Sweet 16 round with upsets over nationally ranked opponents Ramapo and Rhode Island, and collecting the college’s first ever NCAA tournament wins.
Kucjok Ater (Syracuse, N.Y.) and Rhamel Williams (Bronx, N.Y.) each posted 16 points to lead the Morrisville State efforts, while teammate Jordan Prior (Cortland, N.Y.) added 10 points, rounding out the scoring leader board. Ater added eight rebounds and two blocks to his tallies, as Brandon Hanks (Syracuse, N.Y.) led the Mustangs on the boards, snaring nine off the glass to go along with his seven points and four assists.
Five recorded double figures for St. Mary’s, including Donn Hill who tallied a team high 17 points and 11 rebounds. Jeff Haus also posted the double-double, adding 13 points, 11 rebounds, while teammates James Davenport, Nick LaGuerre and Brendan McFall contributed 15, 14 and 11 respectively.
Morrisville State got off to a slow start offensively, shooting a mere 20 percent from the floor in the opening minutes while the Seahawks managed to hit nearly every shot, racking up an 11 point lead midway through the opening period.
The Mustangs finally found their offensive niche after Brandon Henry (Harlem, N.Y.) scored a quick layup and Davis another less than a minute later. Ater made it a five point game with 9:28 to go, but St. Mary’s quickly regained the double digit lead, mustering up a 13 point advantage late in the period.
Hanks forced a Seahawk turnover and immediately found Ater for a quick tally, who seconds later converted a three-point play to send the Mustangs into the locker room trailing 35-27 at the break.
Morrisville State struggled in the first half, shooting just 32 percent from the floor, including 1-of-7 from long range, while St. Mary’s nailed 52 percent of shots taken, and 6-of-8 from beyond the arc (75%).
In the second, Williams posted a quick bucket to cut it to six, but St. Mary’s went on a 12-0 run to open the game to a 18 point lead.
Morrisville State battled back to within 10 after Mickey Davis (Syracuse, N.Y.) hit a three, but that’s as close as the Mustangs would get as St. Mary’s went on to collect the win.