Gators, Off to their Best Start in Program History, Come Back to Win E8 Opener at Utica in Overtime
UTICA, N.Y. – Russell Sage College Men’s Basketball erased a double-digit deficit to win Tuesday night's Empire 8 Conference opener at Utica 91-89 in overtime.
| Final | 1 | 2 | OT | T |
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
|
44 | 33 | 14 | 91 |
|
|
44 | 33 | 12 | 89 |
Team Stats
Utica
| Game Statistics | Russell Sage College | Utica |
|---|---|---|
| Field Goals | (31-82) | (26-61) |
| Field Goal % | 37.8% | 42.6% |
| Rebounds | 54 | 44 |
| Assists | 9 | 14 |
| Turnovers | 12 | 18 |
| Pts off Turnovers | 24 | 14 |
| 2nd Chance Pts | 22 | 10 |
| Pts in the Paint | 44 | 32 |
| Fastbreak Pts | 4 | 4 |
| Bench Pts | 30 | 24 |
UTICA, N.Y. – Russell Sage College Men's Basketball erased a double-digit deficit to win Tuesday night's Empire 8 Conference opener at Utica 91-89 in overtime.
Senior guard Brandon Harris (Elmsford, NY/Alexander Hamilton/Herkimer CC) laid home a dish from junior guard Deavion Springsteen (Albany, NY/Albany) with two seconds left for the eventual game-winning points. The ensuing Utica inbounds pass was stolen away by sophomore guard Kyle Dhu (Ozone Park, NY/Brooklyn Law and Tech) to seal it.
The Gators (9-1/1-0 E8), off to their best ten-game start to a season in program history, had four players score in double figures.
Harris topped all participants with 26 points on 8-of-21 shooting. The All-Conference pick added nine rebounds, four assists and two steals.
Senior forward Jeremy Rosario (Albany, NY/Colonie Central/Alma) went for a season-high 20 points on 7-of-14 shooting. He secured six caroms and blocked a shot.
Junior guard Pape Tunkara (Mount Vernon, NY/Iona Prep/Genesee CC) contributed 14 points, while junior center Khalel Noteman (Brooklyn, NY/Canarsie) tallied 11 points on 5-of-10 shooting and seven rebounds.
"Tonight was a great team win to open up conference play," commented Head Coach Brian Barnes. "We have tremendous respect for Utica. I was really proud of how we responded to adversity tonight in each half. We stayed together and found a way to win. I thought our offensive rebounding was a key to the game and our effort in the press was terrific."
Sophomore guard Jordan Cain, announced as the E8 Player of the Week on Monday, paced Utica (7-3/0-1 E8), which fell for the first time on its home court this season, with 22 points on 6-of-15 shooting.
Junior center Keyaton Parks registered a double-double of 15 points on 6-of-9 shooting and 15 rebounds, while senior guard Dayion Thompson recorded 18 points, 16 of which came after the halftime intermission.
RSC erased an 11-point first half deficit to take a 70-69 lead with 3:42 remaining in regulation. Knotted at 70, the Gators reeled off seven-straight points on a pair of Tunkara foul shots and three pointer, followed by a steal and fast-break layup by Dhu.
Utica answered with the next seven points in the final 45 seconds, all by Thompson. The first-team All-E8 pick banked in a turnaround running floater at the buzzer to force the extra session.
The Gators continue E8 play on Friday night at Keuka. Tip-off is slated for 7:30 PM.
Gator Bites: The 2025-2026 season marks the 17th for Head Coach Brian Barnes at the helm of Russell Sage College Men's Basketball…He achieved career win number 200 on November 15 at SUNY Cobleskill...Russell Sage got off to its best five (5-0) and ten-game (9-1) starts to a season in program history…The lone loss was to Trinity, the top-ranked team in the nation...The 2014-2015 edition of the Gators started their season at 6-1 and 7-3 on their way to a 23-5 overall record and capturing the Skyline Conference Tournament Championship, and accompanying NCAA Tournament berth...RSC started that historic season, and also began last year, with a 12-3 record...The Gators are coming off a trip to the Quarterfinals of the Empire 8 Conference Championship Tournament…Seven players back from last year's squad…Harris, Springsteen, and Noteman headline the returners…Harris, voted third-team All-Conference, topped the Gators with 12.9 points per-game last season…Barnes added seven newcomers to the program…Dhu was tabbed the E8 Player of the Week for the period ending Sunday, November 16…He averaged 25.5 points on 60.7 percent shooting in the 2-0 week…The sophomore made 61.5 percent of his three-point attempts and totaled 11 rebounds, five steals and four assists across the pair of victories.
