By: Mike Rose
Plattsburgh, NY — It's been an up-and-down campaign for the Brockport men's basketball team, but Friday's loss to Plattsburgh may have been the biggest blemish thus far. Leading by as many as 15 with just over five minutes to play, the Golden Eagles allowed the Plattsburgh State Cardinals to rally all the way back and steal a 73-72 win. Willard Anderson Jr. sunk the game-winning free throws with 0.3 seconds remaining to secure the victory.
Anderson was fouled by Brockport's Alex Tavrarez on a three-pointer right before the horn after Tavarez missed the front end of a 1-and-1 with just over six seconds left. Kevin Tabb led Plattsburgh with 21 points, including 12 in the second half.
The Golden Eagles trailed by five at the break and came out of the locker room slowly. A triple from Tim Thomas extended the Cardinals' lead to nine with 16:50 left in the game. Out of a timeout, Brockport found what appeared to be a winning formula. The five of Jevonny Brown, Mehki Beckett, Caquan Wester, Tyler Cowie and Tavarez started to find a rhythm.
By the time Beckett took a breather at the 8:33 mark, Brockport had exploded on a 26-6 run to open up an 11-point lead. It seemed the Golden Eagles were on their way to a critical conference road victory before Tabb got rolling.
Tabb drilled a trio of contested two-point jumpers and saw Franklin Infante add one as well to cut a 13-point lead to five. Free throws from Dylan Trombley cut the margin down to three. After Brown split a pair of free throws it was Trombley again, banking in a three to cut Brockport's lead to one. Anderson put the game on ice to finish off the comeback.
Beckett finished with 16 to lead the way for the Golden Eagles in his second game after returning from injury. Tavarez added 15 points and Brown posted 14. The loss was a major setback for Brockport as they fell to 7-5 overall on the season and 3-3 in SUNYAC play. Beckett hopes his team can have a short memory ahead of tomorrow's contest.
"Just a next-game mentality," Beckett said. "We just have to finish the game better. We have to focus on Potsdam tomorrow, another big conference game for us and we have a chance tomorrow to redeem ourselves."
Brockport will look for that redemption effort tomorrow, Jan. 13, when they face off with the Potsdam Bears (3-10, 2-4) with tip-off scheduled for 4 p.m.
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