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Bears come out with basketball OT victory

Posted 12/7/11

POTSDAM, N.Y.- Three Bears scored in double figures as Potsdam pulled out a dramatic 72-68 win against Oneonta in overtime. Sophomore Tony Efese led the charge with 21 points and added nine rebounds …

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Bears come out with basketball OT victory

Posted

POTSDAM, N.Y.- Three Bears scored in double figures as Potsdam pulled out a dramatic 72-68 win against Oneonta in overtime. Sophomore Tony Efese led the charge with 21 points and added nine rebounds while sophomore Rob Duquette scored five of his 16 points in overtime.

Defense ruled the first half of play as Oneonta managed to shoot only 35.7 percent from the field while the Bears (3-4, 1-2 SUNYAC) were held to 31.4 percent. The Red Dragons went 0-for-5 from behind the arc and Potsdam managed to convert on one of their five attempts. The largest lead of the half was only six points when an Oneonta bucket gave them a 14-8 advantage. The Bears would rally and sophomore Greg Torchon converted on a driving lay up with six seconds remaining in half to give Potsdam a 25-24 lead going into the break.

The second half featured six lead changes and three ties as the momentum shifted back-and-forth. Trailing 49-47, Efese buried a three-pointer and senior Brad Drysdale converted in the paint to give Potsdam a 52-49 lead with 4:02 left. However, the Red Dragons would knock down a three to even the score. After two Oneonta free throws gave them the advantage junior Curtis Pierce drove to the basket and again tied the game. A quick 4-0 spurt gave Oneonta a 58-54 lead with only 1:07 remaining but junior Greg Torchon knocked down a clutch three-pointer and Efese would cause a turnover and then sunk another jumper to give the Bears a one point advantage with 35 ticks on the clock. A foul on Pierce sent the Red Dragons to the line with a chance to take the lead but Dan Lee was only able to hit 1-of-2 and the game headed to overtime.

The Bears would set the tone on the first possession of overtime, forcing a shot clock violation because of solid defensive pressure. The biggest play of overtime came with Potsdam clinging to a three-point advantage and only 22 seconds remaining. Lambert went to the line and missed on both attempts but Duquette grabbed the board and laid it back in while drawing a foul. The three-point play gave Potsdam an insurmountable five-point lead and led to the win.

“We made some big plays at the end of the game and it was good to see that it came from a bunch of different people,” said Head Coach Sherry Dobbs.

Dobbs, though, was happy with his team’s defensive effort.

“We locked down on the defensive end, and did a good job in overtime. We did some good things but I was most impressed with our defense intensity tonight.”

Oneonta (1-6, 0-3) were led by 15 points from Kevin Donahue and 14 apiece by Frankie Kelly and Cameron Boyden.

Potsdam returns to action Friday night as they host Brockport at 8 p.m.