HOUGHTON, N.Y. -- A St. John Fisher run midway through the second half, broke open a five-point game and despite a strong finish by the Highlanders, Houghton dropped an 89-77 decision to the E8 leading Cardinals in men's basketball action Friday night.
The opening seven minutes of the contest saw four ties and 10 lead changes as the teams traded punches early. But the Cardinals used the next 10 minutes to gain a 10-point advantage and took a 40-32 lead into the locker room.Â
After the break, the Highlanders were able to pull within five, but once again the Cardinals responded with their own push and stretched the margin to as many as 23 at the midway point of the half. Down 25 with just under eight minutes left, Houghton slowly battled back and pulled back within 13 with 2:33 remaining. The Cardinals converted key free throws down the stretch to grab the win.
Houghton hit 58 percent of their shots from the field in the second, but St. John Fisher converted 21 of 29 shots from the charity stripe to Houghton's 7 for 9 showing in the second half.
Johnathan Stowe led the Highlanders with 19 points and pulled down a game-high 13 rebounds. Brandon Camacho added 18 points and four assists, while Phil Pellegrino poured in 12 points off the bench.
Houghton (5-11; 1-7 E8) is back in action when they host Stevens Tech on Friday, Jan. 30.