November 29, 2006

Izzi Metz

John Grazioli

GENEVA, N.Y.—The Hobart College basketball team gave Head Coach Izzi Metz ’98 a fine welcome home tonight in Bristol Gym. The Statesmen defeated Cazenovia College 76-69 to give Metz his first win as a head coach in his home debut.

Hobart junior forward John Grazioli (St. Anthony’s/Melville, N.Y.) posted a game-high 27 points to go with nine rebounds. Senior guard Mike Manning (Center Moriches/Mastic, N.Y.) added 16 points, nine rebounds, three assists, and three steals, while first-year guard Tim Ivory (Episcopal Academy/Narberth, Pa.) and senior forward Kevin Riley (Xavier/Brooklyn, N.Y.) chipped in 13 and 10 points, respectively.

Junior forward Eric Latendress (Onondaga CC/Utica, N.Y.) paced three Wildcats in double digits with 21 points, including 5 of 9 three-pointers.

The Statesmen (1-2) got off to a fast start, building a 10-point lead just seven minutes into the contest. Cazenovia (1-3) whittled away at its deficit, taking a 28-27 lead with 5:32 to go in the half on a layup by senior guard Joshua Winans (Afton/Afton, N.Y.). It was the only lead of the game for Caz.

Hobart used a 10-2 run to close the first half with a 37-30 lead. The Statesmen defense forced the Wildcats to wait more than five minutes between field goals in the closing minutes.

Cazenovia got within two twice in the first five minutes of the second half, the last time on a layup by senior center Steven Zavackis (Carthage/Carthage, N.Y.) with 14:52 remaining. He finished with 10 points and a game-high 11 rebounds.

Hobart responded to the threat with a 10-0 run capped by a pair of threes by Ivory. The Statesmen led by as many as 16 down the stretch before the Wildcats managed to get within single digits in the final 30 seconds.

Metz’s squad shot 42.9 percent from the floor, including 33.3 from beyond the arc, and 72 percent from the line. Cazenovia relied heavily on the three-pointer, hoisting exactly half of its shots from beyond the arc. The Wildcats hit just 28.1 percent from long range (9-32).

Hobart is back in action on Dec. 2, when the Statesmen travel to Ithaca. Tipoff is scheduled for 4 p.m.