Photo by Corey Maher
QUINTIN JAMES
Special to The Leader
Coming off a disappointing loss to SUNYAC-leading Plattsburgh, the Fredonia men’s basketball team took to the road to face off against two division opponents, two of them during the weekend. Visits Oswego and Cortland were on the schedule and these were games that were crucial to the post-season hopes for the Blue Devils.
Fredonia had to come into the games focused and ready for the challenge ahead. That started with a Friday night clash against division foe Oswego.
Fredonia looked like a team of old, coming out flat and letting Oswego take advantage of its home court to build a large lead over the Blue Devils in the first half. Fredonia ended up losing 77-61 in a game where the two squad had eerily similar stat lines, but in the end Oswego made more plays and a 35-14 run to end the first half, which spelled another L for the Blue Devils.
Sophomore forward Ian Helps lead the way for the Blue Devils with 16 points, while junior guard Richard De La Cruz added 14 and junior Kareem Brown had 11. The Blue Devils continued their cold shooting from the 3-point line as they only shot 23 percent from behind the arc and failed to get into a rhythm on offense.
Fredonia dropped to 5-8 in conference play and lost a crucial game to a team that it was trying to pass in the standings.
The Blue Devils couldn’t dwell on the loss, as the team had to turn right back around the next day to face a tough Cortland team who was looking to solidify their place in the SUNYAC playoffs as well. The Blue Devils again came out flat and per usual. The Cortland Red Dragons took advantage and grabbed a large lead that ended up being the deciding factor in the game.
Down by as many as 21 in the first half, the Blue Devils again mounted a serious comeback but fell short by the score of 81-76. This loss was a heartbreaker for the Blue Devils as they came all the way back just to taste defeat again.
Helps had another amazing performance as he racked up 29 points and six rebounds shooting 11 for 16 from the field and seven for 10 from the charity stripe. Freshman forward/center Jared Fish had 10 points and seven rebounds to help the cause but it wasn’t enough as the losing streak continues.
The Blue Devils woke up late in the first half to try and save what looked to be a lost game. They battled back and in the second half, going on a 12-0 run to cut the lead to four. The lead was gone with five minutes left as the comeback was complete, but the Blue Devils ran out of fight as Cortland converted on 11 of 13 free throw attempts in the last two minutes to win the game.
Head Coach Philip Seymour seemed disappointed but still confident that his group of guys will turn it around and fight for a playoff spot. “We have to take this one game at a time,” he said. “We have no choice but to stay positives. These guys are competitors and they want to win. We have showed that we can compete in these games. We have to be more consistent defensively and put two good halves together.”
The game plan from here on out is simple: execute. Seymour knows that SUNYAC is a hard conference to win in and knows how to make sure the Blue Devils are ready for battle each time they step out on the floor.
“This is a tough league and any small mistake can cost you the game,” said Seymour. “I as a coach have to do better and we have to be able to execute our game plan. and be prepared to play from the beginning to the end.”
The players have to get back to the basis and focus on defense and consistent offense. If they follow the game plan, then they will fix this, but everyone has to be on board.