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ROCHESTER, N.Y. -- Nazareth junior Mitch Ford broke the men's basketball single-game scoring record with 49 points Tuesday as the host Golden Flyers defeated Ithaca, 95-84, in Empire 8 Conference action at the Kidera Gymnasium. Senior Vinny Amuso, playing in his final home game, and sophomore Dan Morse each produced a career high 14 points, and junior Nick Nadeau had 11.

Ford made 19 of 33 shots from the field with three three-pointers and went 8-for-10 from the free-throw line to break the mark of 40 points set by Nazareth Hall of Famer Richard Sparks on Dec. 13, 1986. He also set school records for field goals made and field goals attempted in a game with 19 and 33 respectively. Following the game, Ford shared, "It's a nice accomplishment, but it wouldn't mean as much if we didn't win the game. I'm glad we could do it for Vinny's last game. We wanted to make sure we worked hard for him."

The Nazareth victory avenged an earlier defeat and improved the Golden Flyers to 9-14 overall and 5-9 in Empire 8 games. Ithaca, battling for the fourth conference playoff spot, dropped to 11-13 overall and 8-7 in the E8. Ford also grabbed 14 rebounds and had three steals.

Nazareth led 53-46 at halftime and never relinquished the lead in the second half, thanks to Ford, who scored 24 in the first half and 25 in the second. The Golden Flyers' lead grew as large as 13 points late in the second half. The combined 77 points from Ford, Amuso, and Morse helped Nazareth overcome Maurice Mills' foul trouble. Mills entered the game ranked second on the team averaging 19.1 points per game. He saw nine minutes of action Tuesday evening and had five points and five rebounds before fouling out with 17:39 to play in regulation. After Mills picked up his fifth foul, the Bombers closed to within four points, 65-61, with 10:43 to play. Ford answered on the Golden Flyers' next two possessions with back-to-back offensive rebounds and layups.

In the first half, Ithaca connected on six of its first seven three-point attempts (86 percent) to match Amuso's torrid start. Amuso made four shots from outside the arc in the opening 5:10. As a team, Nazareth missed its first two three-point attempts then connected on 9-15 (60 percent) during the rest of the period. Ford ended the half with a three-point play as he dunked over an Ithaca defender and made the ensuing free throw. It gave the Golden Flyers a 53-46 advantage at the break.

Nazareth's defense forced the Bombers into 16 turnovers during the course of the game. In the second half, Ithaca made only 1-9 three-point attempts (9 percent) to allow the Golden Flyers to maintain their lead. Keefe Gitto had a team-high 20 points and 15 rebounds to lead the Bombers in both categories. Sam Bevan and and Carroll Rich added 16 points and 15 points, respectively.

The Golden Flyers play their final two games of the regular season on the road this weekend. Nazareth is at Stevens on February 20th, and the Golden Flyers play at Hartwick on the 21st.