Men’s Basketball Falls to Cortland at Cortaca Classic

Written by Andrew Capitelli (SJC-LI Sports Information)

Cortland, NY| Despite a career-best 35 points from senior Fernando Vazquez, the St. Joseph's College (L.I.) men's basketball team was defeated 93-84 by SUNY Cortland at the annual Cortaca Classic on Saturday afternoon.

With the loss the Golden Eagles slide to 0-3 on the year as the Red Dragons move to 1-1.

Tight in the early-going the score was tied on four different occasions in the opening five minutes but it was Cortland that began to pull away building a 10-point lead (27-17) 10:20 into the game.

A 16-5 run by SJC, capped off by a Vazquez layup, drew the guests back to within one point (33-32), but the Red Dragons warded off the Golden Eagles' momentum and compiled a 17-6 run of their own to take a 50-38 lead into the break.

With Cortland up 67-52 with 12:34 to play in the second four-consecutive three-pointers from junior CJ Capilets cut the deficit to seven points (71-64) but it would be the closest the Golden Eagles got to catching the the Red Dragons as they eventually fell by the score of 93-84.

Vazquez's 35 points came off 13-23 shooting. The San Juan, Puerto Rico native also contributed five rebounds, four steals and three assists and appeared on the All-Tournament Team.

Capilets collected 15 points and shot 5-7 from beyond the arc. Junior Isaiah Moore also scored 15 points.

The Golden Eagles return to action on Tuesday, November 22 when they host SUNY Brockport in a non-conference contest at 5:00 PM. Live video and stats will be available here.