POTSDAM, N.Y. - Three Cardinals scored 20+ points for the Plattsburgh State men's basketball team to help lift the team past North Country and State University of New York Athletic Conference foe Potsdam, 94-75. The Cardinals shot 53.1% (34-64) from the field, 38.9% (7-18) from behind the arc and 67.9% (19-28) from the freee-throw line during the contest.
Plattsburgh rises to 10-6 for the season, 5-4 in the SUNYAC. Meanwhile, Potsdam drops to 2-13 overall, 1-8 in conference play.
Potsdam hustled out to an early lead after Anthony Williams sank a layup and then stole the ball back, helping it find its way into the hands of Curtis Pierce who scored a layup of his own. Plattsburgh finally answered back with two free-throws made by Chris Ruiz. The lead flip-flopped for a while, but Plattsburgh took a definite 13-point lead with 7:57 left in the first half. The Bears would cut that down to eight (43-35) by the time the buzzer sounded to signal halftime.
The second half of the game belonged to the Cardinals, who jumped out to an 18-point advantage before the first five minutes were up and then peaked at 23 points (82-59) with just under five minutes left.
The game ended with Carl Munnerlyn going 1-for-2 at the charity stripe for Plattsburgh and Anthony Williams grabbing the rebound for the Bears with eight second left to play. Potsdam would not get another shot off before the final buzzer.
Steve Thomas matched his season-high mark of 27 points, which he hit last Saturday at Geneseo, and added nine rebounds, four assists and two blocks to his stats. Munnerlyn was second on the team with 22 points, followed by Ruiz with 20. Errol Daniyan recorded his fourth double-double of the season, leading the Cards with 10 boards and adding 12 points to the mix.
Pierce topped Potsdam with 27 points, while Williams contributed 19 and pulled down a team-high seven rebounds. Olando Minott posted 14 points on the scoreboard and dished out a game-high five assists for the Bears.
Plattsburgh returns to action on Friday, when it takes on Oneonta at home at 8 p.m.
