ROCHESTER, NY – Nazareth exploded out of the gates against Cortland on Saturday afternoon and never looked back, defeating the Red Dragons 79-44 in the championship game of the Mike Daley Memorial Tournament. Graduate student
Jonathan Park was named the Most Valuable Player of the tournament after scoring a game-high 25 points on 12-for-16 shooting, to go along with 15 rebounds, and six blocks. Joining Park on the all-tournament team were
Zach Stenglein and
Logan Blankenberg. With the win, Nazareth improves to 2-0 on the season.
Park chipped in 25 points, 15 rebounds and six blocks.
Before the tournament, head coach
Kevin Broderick had these words to say about Mike Daley. "Coach Daley stood for everything that is right about athletics. He devoted 23 years to Nazareth basketball and he always set the standard for what competing with class is all about. He is universally respected for the care and concern he showed to all while also being a very successful coach."
Nazareth got off to a blistering start, jumping out to 13-2 lead, fueled by a Stenglein 3-pointer and then a steal for a fast break layup. He finished the game with 13 points, five rebounds, and five assists.
The Golden Flyers dominated through the opening 10:26, shooting 10-for-20, compared to just 4-for-17 for the Red Dragons. That allowed them to build a 24-8 lead.
Tournament MVP Park converted a traditional 3-point play at the 1:20 mark to give Nazareth a 41-20 lead which it would take into the half.
The Red Dragons shot just 24.2 percent (8-for-33) in the opening half and 30 percent (18-for-60) for the game.
Nazareth continued to roll in the second half, never holding less than a 22-point lead, which came at 62-40 with 8:02 remaining. A 9-0 run over the next 4:24 on six points from Park and a 3-pointer from Blankenberg took the wind out of Cortland's sails. Blankenberg ended with 11 points on 4-for-6 from the floor, while also plucking three steals.
Jordan Haggard chipped in eight points, while freshman
Solomon McFarlane added seven of his own.
Nazareth will be back in action on Thursday for the Mark's Pizzeria Crosstown Challenge. The Golden Flyers will head to RIT for a 8 p.m. contest.
