The SUNY Oneonta men's basketball team did its best to overcome a 16-point, first half deficit, but fell to St. John Fisher College tonight 83-72.  Junior Mikey McElroy (Saratoga Springs/Saratoga Springs) led four players in double figures with 18 points, as the Red Dragons dropped its second straight contest.
 
Oneonta (2-2) fell behind by as many as 19 points early in the second half before making a run to close the gap to seven points after a pair of made free throws by senior Zach Mager (New City/Clarkstown South) at the 13:02 mark.  Mager's free throws capped a 14-2 run by the Red Dragons over a four-minute span.
 
St. John Fisher (1-0) countered with a 14-3 run of its own during the next four minutes to go ahead by 18 points with 9:02 left.
 
Oneonta made a final push and, a three-pointer by McElroy, brought the Red Dragons to within four points at 72-68 with 1:15 remaining in the game.  St. John Fisher made 9-of-10 free throws down the stretch to pull away for the final margin of victory.
 
Mager finished the game with 13 points while freshman Eulogio Medina (Washington Heights/Wheels Academy) added 14 points and junior Jackson Zuvic (Cold Spring/Haldane) contributed 10 points.
 
Oneonta shot 42 percent from the floor in the first half, but the Cardinals shot 67 percent to build its 43-27 lead at the break.  Oneonta only trailed 31-25 with 5:09 left in the opening half before St. John Fisher closed the half 12-2 run.
 
Oneonta will play its home opener next Tuesday night against city rival Hartwick College.  The game is scheduled for an 8pm tip-off.
 
Newspaper Box Score
ST. JOHN FISHER COLL 83, SUNY ONEONTA 72
 
SUNY ONEONTA (2-2)
MCELROY, Mikey 5-12 6-8 18; MEDINA, Eulogio 4-9 3-3 14; MAGER, Zach 4-9 4-4 13; ZUVIC, Jackson 4-5 1-2 10; WILLIAMS, Kareem 3-3 0-0 6; KELLY, Frankie 2-8 0-0 4; DIGNAN, Jack 1-4 0-0 3; COLEMAN, Lawrence 1-2 0-0 2; MASSARONI, Grant 1-1 0-0 2; THOMSEN, Seth 0-2 0-0 0; FORD, Jeremiah 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 25-55 14-17 72.
 
ST. JOHN FISHER COLL (1-0)
Keegan Ryan 8-10 4-6 20; Tyler Hart 4-10 6-6 17; Adam Ambielli 3-7 4-6 12; Optimystik Kinard 4-5 1-2 11; Chaz Lott 1-6 5-6 8; Stefan Bock 3-4 2-5 8; Charles McVay 3-4 1-2 7; Zach Ottaway 0-0 0-0 0; Garrett Sisson 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 26-46 23-33 83.
 
3-point goals--SUNY Oneonta 8-18 (MEDINA, Eulogio 3-4; MCELROY, Mikey 2-4; ZUVIC, Jackson 1-1; MAGER, Zach 1-3; DIGNAN, Jack 1-4; KELLY, Frankie 0-2), St. John Fisher Coll 8-17 (Tyler Hart 3-6; Adam Ambielli 2-6; Optimystik Kinard 2-2; Chaz Lott 1-3).
Fouled out--SUNY Oneonta-None, St. John Fisher Coll-None.
Rebounds--SUNY Oneonta 24 (MCELROY, Mikey 8), St. John Fisher Coll 32 (Keegan Ryan 7).
Assists--SUNY Oneonta 14 (DIGNAN, Jack 5), St. John Fisher Coll 15 (Chaz Lott 7).
Total fouls--SUNY Oneonta 27, St. John Fisher Coll 18.
Technical fouls--SUNY Oneonta-None, St. John Fisher Coll-None.
A-100