Schenectady, NY: The SUNY Cobleskill men's basketball team took a tough road loss Monday night, falling to Union College 97-71 at the Viniar Athletic Center. The Fighting Tigers found themselves in an early deficit and, despite strong efforts from several players, couldn't close the gap against Union's well-rounded attack.
Elijah Morris (Mount Vernon, NY) led Cobleskill with 18 points on 7-15 shooting, including 4-7 from beyond the arc.
Quanire Greene (Albany, NY/Bishop Maginn) added 13 points, shooting 66.7% from three-point range, and recorded a steal. First-year player
Marquay Tanksley (Cohoes, NY) chipped in 11 points, three rebounds, and two assists, while
Jermaine Wheeler (Manhattan, NY/Marist) contributed eight points, seven rebounds, and two assists, providing a physical presence in the paint.
Union jumped out to an 11-0 lead before Wheeler broke the run with a second-chance bucket at the 16:11 mark. Cobleskill trimmed the lead to eight points after a pull-up jumper by Greene, but Union responded by stretching their advantage to 39-18 with 6:31 remaining in the first half. Cobleskill kept fighting, but Union closed out the half with a 7-1 run, sending the Tigers into halftime trailing 57-31.
At halftime, Greene led Cobleskill with 13 points, hitting two three-pointers at 66.7% from beyond the arc, while Morris added seven points. Union's hot shooting was evident, as they hit 63.9% of their shots compared to Cobleskill's 35.5%. Union also held a clear edge on the boards (22-12) and in assists (14-3).
In the second half, Cobleskill matched Union with 40 points each, led by Morris, who added 11 more points. However, Union's first-half lead kept the Fighting Tigers from mounting a full comeback.
The Fighting Tigers (1-1) will look to regroup as they travel to face Westfield State on Wednesday, November 13, for a 7:00 p.m. non-conference matchup.
