NEW PALTZ, NY- The SUNY New Paltz men’s basketball team defeated Lehman College at the Hawks Center by a score of 78-72 in the consolation game in the Rino’s Pizza Tip-Off Tournament.
Lehman came out in the first half and established a comfortable lead. Lehman sophomore Mathias Raggiotto made the lead possible netting 19 points in the first half. Senior Perry Daniel contributed greatly scoring 14 points in the first half. With eight minutes left in the half, New Paltz was down by 16 points making it the highest lead the Lightning would ever hold.
After the half New Paltz came out with some fire, getting them back into the ball game. Hawks Sophomore Shereef Taylor led the Hawks with some powerful defense. In the first five minutes, Taylor compiled three steals and one block that created momentum for the Hawks as they battled for the victory.
The New Paltz offense started to catch fire as Sophomore Nick Taldi drained two huge three pointers to get the Hawks within reach and then giving them the lead. The Hawks established the lead with seven minutes left in the game and didn’t look back.
Raggiotto led the Lightning in scoring with 27 points and Daniel added 20. Lehman falls to 0-4 on the season.
Harris Wichard carried the Hawks with 26 points and Jayquan Anderson scored 22. Both Wichard and Anderson collected eight rebounds a piece. Taldi shot well from the perimeter adding 16 points, making four three pointers.
The Hawks improve to 2-1 on the season and return to the court Tuesday November 24th when they travel to SUNYIT for a tip-off time of 7 pm.
Released by: Tyler Terlecky
