January 30, 2004

GENEVA, N.Y.—The Hobart basketball team shot an amazing 71 percent from the floor in the second half to rally past visiting St. Lawrence, 88-80, in an Upstate Collegiate Athletic Association matchup. Sophomore guard Colby Feane (Weedsport/Weedsport, N.Y.) paced the Statesmen with 17 points, including 15 in the second half, a career-high nine assists, and five steals.

At the 9:10 mark of the second half with the scored tied at 55—one of four times the contest was deadlocked—Hobart (7-9, 3-3 UCAA) went on a 7-0 run to take control of the game. Down the stretch, the Saints (11-4, 3-3 UCAA) managed to trim their deficit to three twice, but a three-pointer by senior guard Brad Strait (Fort Plain/Fort Plain, N.Y.) with 3:13 remaining put Hobart back in front by two possessions for good.

Strait finished with 14 points and a career-high matching four steals.

The Statesmen struggled in the first half, allowing St. Lawrence to shoot 62.5 percent from the floor, while committing 15 turnovers. Senior guard Ahmad Toussaint (Teaneck/Teaneck, N.J.) scored eight of his game-high 18 points in the first half.

However, the second half was an entirely different story. Throwing the ball through the hoop appeared as easy as throwing a rock in the ocean for the Statesmen, who connected on 22-of-31 field goal attempts, by far the best field goal percentage in a half by Hobart this season. The Statesmen also committed just six turnovers.

Joining Feane and Strait in double digits were first-year forward Billy Clarke (St. Mary’s/Manhasset, N.Y.) and first-year guard Mike Manning (Center Moriches/Mastic, N.Y.) with 16 and 15 points, respectively. Clarke’s career-high performance included three three-pointers.

St. Lawrence got double digit efforts from first-year guard Matt Blue (Bellingham/Bellingham, Mass.), junior forward Aaron Marshall (Buffalo Traditional/Buffalo, N.Y.), and junior guard Keith Sullivan (Xavier/Brooklyn, N.Y.) with 17, 16, and 12 points, respectively.