Westfield, Mass.: The SUNY Cobleskill men's basketball team came up short in a tough road game against Westfield State University, falling 106-69 in non-conference action on Wednesday night at The Woodward Center. Despite a strong start, turnovers and cold shooting in the second half made it difficult for the Fighting Tigers to keep up.
The Fighting Tigers were led by senior big man
Jermaine Wheeler (Manhattan, NY/Marist), who recorded a double-double with 20 points on 8-of-10 shooting and pulled down 10 rebounds. Junior guard
Quanire Greene (Albany, NY/Bishop Maginn) added 14 points, connecting on 2-of-5 from three-point range and grabbing three rebounds.
Devin Dennard (Elmira, NY) contributed 11 points, while
Chace Peterson (Troy, NY) scored 10 points, adding three assists. First-year swingman
Marquay Tanksley (Cohoes, NY) posted a team-high 11 rebounds to help Cobleskill win the battle on the glass, 47-45?
Cobleskill shot 36.2% from the field and struggled from beyond the arc, hitting just 2 of 18 attempts for 11.1%. In contrast, Westfield State shot 50.6% from the floor, though they also struggled from three-point range, making only 2 of 13 attempts (15.4%). Despite Cobleskill's 47-45 advantage on the boards, turnovers proved costly, with the Tigers' 29 giveaways leading to 37 points for the Owls. Westfield also received a major boost from their bench, outscoring Cobleskill's reserves 67-17.
Cobleskill started strong, trading baskets with Westfield and even taking an early 16-9 lead following a Wheeler layup. The Owls, however, responded and eventually went into halftime with a 40-35 edge. Wheeler led the Tigers at the break with 15 points, while Cobleskill held a slight shooting edge at 44.1% compared to Westfield's 42.9%.
In the second half, Westfield State turned up the defensive pressure, converting Cobleskill's turnovers into scoring runs. The Owls went on a critical 10-0 run early in the half, extending their lead to 54-37. Despite Cobleskill's efforts, Westfield found their rhythm, shooting 56.3% from the field in the second half to put the game out of reach.
The Tigers will look to bounce back when they travel to Mount Saint Mary College next Tuesday, November 19, for another non-conference matchup, tipping off at 7:00 p.m.
