ROCHESTER, NY (
nazathletics.com) - Nazareth Men's Basketball (2-1) fell to RIT (2-1), 87-73, Wednesday night inside Clark Gymnasium, as the Tigers' bench and transition game proved the difference despite a late Golden Flyer push.
HOW IT HAPPENED
- Nazareth traded blows with the hosts early, with Corey Faines hitting a three off a Merritt Holly assist for a 3-2 lead, and the sides tied four times in the opening minutes.
- Holly's layup, set up by Josh Harter, gave the Golden Flyers a 14-12 edge at the 14:56 mark of the first half before RIT answered and retook the lead for good.
- RIT used an 11-0 stretch fueled by strong three-point shooting to build a double-digit cushion, going into the break up 38-28.
- Nazareth chipped away early in the second half, with Harter and Nick Purdie combining on a 7-0 burst to cut the deficit to 45-38.
- RIT answered with a 20-7 stretch, helped by two free throws after a Nazareth bench technical, to stretch the lead to a game-high 20 at 65-45 with 8:38 remaining.
- The Golden Flyers refused to fold, outscoring the Tigers 19-9 over a 5:51 span as Holly scored seven points and Harter added six, shrinking the gap to 80-71 with 50 seconds left.
- RIT knocked down its free throws down the stretch to close out the win; 87-73.
GAME NOTES
- Harter led Nazareth in points with 19 on 7-of-12 shooting and in assists with seven, and he added five rebounds
- Purdie matched Harter with 19 points of his own
- Holly posted 18 points and eight rebounds, four of them on the offensive glass
- Nazareth went 18-of-21 at the free throw line (85.7%), including a perfect 16-of-16 in the second half, but shot just 3-of-17 from three-point range
UP NEXT
The Golden Flyers will travel to SUNY Oswego to take part in day one of the Mark's Pizzeria Crosstown Classic on Thursday, November 19th. Tip-off is set for 7:30pm, when Nazareth will take on the Lakers to continue their early-season out-of-conference schedule.
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