New London, NH – In a crazy finish where the Roos trailed by 18 in the second half, tied it with 11 seconds left, gave up a three on the other end, then had a potential game-tying buzzer-beating three ruled a two-pointer, the SUNY Canton men's basketball fell 79-78 to the Colby Sawyer Chargers Saturday afternoon.

THE BASICS

• Result: Colby Sawyer 79, SUNY Canton 78
• Location: Dan & Kathleen Hogan Sports Complex – New London, NH
• Records: SUNY Canton (1-8) | Colby Sawyer (1-10)

HOW IT HAPPENED

• The Chargers were out ahead 6-2, but then the Roos went on a 13-3 run with Jordan Sidle knocking down a pair of perimeter shots and Bryon Streb scoring four points as the Roos had a 15-9 advantage after the second media timeout.
• SUNY Canton led 24-16 after three points by Malaki Smith, but then Colby Sawyer went on a nice stretch, scoring 14 of the game's next 19 to take a 30-29 lead.
• Smith added a couple more free throws and Lateef Johnson Jr. scored his ninth point late in the first stanza, but Colby Sawyer ended the half on a high note with four straight points as the hosting squad led 36-32 at the break. Lateef Johnson Jr. had nine points and six boards to lead SUNY Canton.
• The second half did not bode well for the Roos to begin with as Colby Sawyer scored 12 of the first 14 points by the time the first media timeout came around to pull ahead 48-34.
• The Chargers were not done yet either, forcing another early timeout from coach Dylan Seikel as they were ahead 52-34 with 14:33 left to play.
• Right after this though, the Roos started to knock down some shots and a three by Jahmai Francois made it single digits again with the contest at 57-48 with 10:41 left in the half.
• A few minutes later, SUNY Canton had a run with Edram Gbekou and Lateef Johnson Jr. leading an 11-3 Roos run as SUNY Canton pulled within five with the score at 65-60 at the 5:39 mark.
• After even play, Smith drained a much-needed deep three with just over a minute left as SUNY Canton trailed 72-68.
• Later, the Roos forced a backcourt turnover from the Chargers and got it within two with 20 seconds left after a Sidle layup.
• Then, SUNY Canton forced another backcourt turnover and Kolton Castrello tied it at 76 with 11 seconds left by scoring a wide open layup while the Colby Sawyer defense was discombobulated.
• However, the Chargers pushed the ball quickly off the SUNY Canton bucket and scored a hoop plus a foul with 1.6 seconds remaining.
• The Roos were down 79-76 and Streb baseball passed it down to Castrello in the corner. It was a clean catch by Castrello, and a step-back jumper banked home with 0.3 seconds on the clock, but Castrello had a toe on the 3-point line as the points only counted for a pair as SUNY Canton fell 79-78.

INSIDE THE NUMBERS

• Lateef Johnson Jr. led the team with 19 points and 10 rebounds for his second straight double-double. Smith had 15 points to tie a season high to go along with three steals.
• Bryon Streb had a great bounce-back performance with 12 points, four rebounds, and a team-high four assists. Jahdeuir Reese pitched in with three steals and four points.
• Four starters scored in double figures for the Chargers with Tobey Bellows leading the way with 20 points and 4-for-7 shooting from behind the arc.
• SUNY Canton shot 41% on the day (28-69) while Colby Sawyer was an even 50% (31-62). Rebounds were at 32 for the Chargers and 31 for the Roos. Turnovers as well were also nearly the same at 14-11 with Colby Sawyer committing slightly more. The Roos did a decent job keeping Colby Sawyer off the offensive glass, only allowing five offensive rebounds, but had fewer assists (18-12) and points in the paint (50-40).

WHAT'S NEXT?
It will be pure SUNYAC play from here on out as the Roos will head to Oneonta to match up against the Red Dragons on Tuesday, January 6 at 7:30.  
   

Discover SUNY Canton, where innovation meets opportunity. The college's career-focused educational programs emphasize hands-on and applied learning opportunities in digital design, engineering technology, health, information technology, management, public service, and veterinary technology. Faculty members bring real-world experience and exceptional academic expertise to the classroom. As a leader in online education, SUNY Canton offers unmatched flexibility with hundreds of courses and 23 comprehensive degree programs offered completely online. The SUNY Canton Kangaroos compete at the NCAA Division III level and are members of the SUNYAC. In addition to its 15 traditional teams, SUNY Canton offers coed varsity esports and cheerleading.