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ALFRED, N.Y. -- Visiting Nazareth used a 23-6 scoring run during the final 11:34 of the first half to pull away from Alfred State in a men's non-conference basketball game on Thursday evening. The scoring run broke a 16-16 tie and provided the Golden Flyers with a 39-22 advantage at the break. Nazareth went on to defeat the Pioneers 74-52. Senior Brad Ford amassed 22 points and 11 rebounds to lead all players in both categories.

With the victory, the Golden Flyers improve to 11-5 overall. Following the loss, Alfred State drops to 2-16 overall. It is Nazareth's fourth consecutive victory since its heartbreaking overtime loss to Stevens on January 10th. The Golden Flyers' next contest is Tuesday evening when Nazareth hosts St. John Fisher in a critical Empire 8 contest.

Sophomore Mitch Ford ignited the run with a layup with 11:34 to play in the opening stanza to give the Golden Flyers an 18-16 lead. Brad Ford followed with a pair of free throws, before Mitch connected on one of two chots from the charity line. Following a three-pointer by the Pioneers, senior Scott Hayford answered with a shot from outside the arc to give Nazareth a 24-18 lead with about eight minutes to play in the half. Moments later, freshman Jack Mulcahy stole the ball and converted a three-point play. Mitch Ford's two-point jumper, which gave Nazareth its first double-digit lead of the game 29-18, was followed by a layup by sophomore Maurice Mills and three by Brad Ford. Senior Jack Giles also added a pair of free throws. Ford's layup with nine seconds remaining in the half gave the Golden Flyers the 17-point lead at the half.

In the opening 3:10 of the second half, Nazareth's lead swelled to 27 points, 49-22, after the Golden Flyers scored the first 10 points of the period. Mills recorded a layup, which was followed by a three-pointer by Hayford and Brad Ford. Mitch Ford capped the run with a layup. Nazareth took its largest lead of the game, 28 points, with 10:30 to play in regulation after Mulcahy connected from outside the arc. The Golden Flyers maintained a lead of over 20 points throughout the remainder of regulation before claiming the 74-52 victory.

In addition to the points from Brad Ford, Mitch Ford finished with 19 points while Hayford and Mulcahy each tallied nine points. Giles and Mills finished with six points and five points, respectively. Giles amassed a game-high 11 assists to set up many of the Golden Flyers' baskets. Nazareth finished the game shooting 28-59 (47.5 percent) from the field, and the Golden Flyers held Alfred State to 19-47 (40.4 percent) on their field goal attempts.

Nazareth recorded an overwhelming 38-22 advantage in total rebounds. The Ford brothers combined for 19 boards while Hayford collected another four rebounds.

Adam Fezza finished with a team-high 11 points for the Pioneers, and Rob Adams led the team with five rebounds.