December 20 , 200

Colby Feane scored a game-high 25 points against the Cardinals. (photo by K. Colton/SportsPics.net)

GENEVA, N.Y.—The Hobart basketball team put five players in double digits, but it wasn’t enough to overcome the shooting of 19th-ranked St. John Fisher College. The Cardinals connected on 50.8 percent of their shots from the floor, including 56.3 percent from behind the arc, to post a 94-88 victory over the Statesmen in Bristol Gym.

St. John Fisher (6-0) led by as many as eight in the first half and held a seven-point advantage with 2:18 remaining but Hobart closed out the opening session with a 10-3 run to send the teams into the locker room tied at 38.

Hobart (3-3) grabbed its final lead of the contest, 42-40, early in the second frame on a pair of free throws by junior guard Colby Feane (Weedsport/Weedsport, N.Y.). Feane finished with a game-high 25 points, including a 12-of-24 showing from the free throw line.

The Cardinals took advantage of a five-minute field goal drought by Hobart to build an 11-point lead. St. John Fisher launched a 15-2 run that saw senior forward Jeff Sidney (Herkimer/Herkimer, N.Y.) score 11 of his team-high 22 points for a 55-44 advantage.

The visitors expanded their lead to 16 at the 10:56 mark on a three-pointer by sophomore guard Dan Mueller (Waterloo/Waterloo, N.Y.). He finished with 13 points.

The Statesmen clawed their way back into the contest, trimming Fisher’s lead to just four following junior guard Adam Frederic’s (Holy Cross/Flushing, N.Y.) three-pointer with 35 seconds remaining. He finished with 15 points.

After a pair of Cardinal free throws, sophomore guard Mike Manning (Center Moriches/Mastic, N.Y.) answered with a layup to raise his total for the night to 17 and get Hobart back within four, 90-86.

St. John Fisher secured the win by making 4-of-6 from the charity stripe in the final 22 seconds.

For the Cardinals, junior forward Nick Bennett (Binghamton/Binghamton, N.Y.) scored 20 points and grabbed a game-high 11 boards. Junior guard Sean O’Brien (Orchard Park/Orchard Park, N.Y.) also reached double digits with 16 points.

For Hobart, sophomore forward Mike Mastro (Jericho/Westbury, N.Y.) chipped in 15 points and a team-high seven rebounds off the bench, while senior forward Joe Flacke (Schenectady/Schenectady, N.Y.) contributed 10 points.

The Statesmen are back in action at 5 p.m., on Jan. 3, at Roanoke (Va.) College in the first round of the V Foundation Classic.