ONEONTA, N.Y. – Down by four points with under one minute to go in the game is not an enviable position to be in if you're a basketball team.
Any other squad, though, doesn't possess a pair of components unique to the Plattsburgh State men's basketball team. Those two crucial pieces – Mike Mitchell and Jordan Moody – made all the difference for the Cardinals on Friday night.
Mitchell laced a cold-blooded triple with a hand in his face as 36 ticks flickered on the clock and Moody added four dagger free throws in the final 31 seconds in order to lift the Cardinals to a riveting 74-71 triumph over Oneonta State at Dewar Arena.
Teaming with his fellow final-year man to steal the show late, Moody enjoyed one of the best games of his career by bringing a game and career-best 24 points on 7 of 13 shooting to the proverbial table. The Yorktown, N.Y., native rattled in eight of his 11 attempts at the charity line, too.
Not only did the Cardinals (14-5, 9-3 SUNYAC) avenge an early-season overtime loss to the Red Dragons (9-10, 6-6 SUNYAC), they maintained their first-place standing in the State University of New York Athletic Conference (SUNYAC) standings with the come-from-behind victory.
In order to secure the triumph, the Cardinals had to overcome a 36-34 rebounding edge by the home squad who made good on 45.6-percent (26 of 57) of its field goal attempts.
With their sights set squarely on a season sweep of the Cardinals, the Red Dragons opened the game on an 8-5 spree with four of the home team's points coming off the hand of Lawrence Coleman. That was before Moody – who made his third straight appearance in Plattsburgh State's starting lineup – began to assert himself.
Three of the first four shots Moody attempted produced points, the last of which was a step-back downtown splash with 16:08 to go in the first stanza that initiated a 15-2 Plattsburgh State offensive journey.
Taking up positions at the Cardinals' front line of long bombers were Mitchell, Kyle Richardson and Ezra Hodgson who each banged a deep ball through the course of the spurt.
Plattsburgh State's lead inflated to as many as 13 points in the first frame, but the Red Dragons spent the final 8:19 of the 20-minute period on a mission to narrow the margin.
The main tool the Red Dragons employed to accomplish that assignment was the three-point shot. A dunk from Xavier Thomas and a put-back score from Richardson kept the Cardinals' edge at 11, 36-25, with 3:39 to go in the half. Coleman, though, called buckets on a pair of long-range hits before Jackson Zuvic splashed a deep ball of his own to drag the Red Dragons back within five, 41-36, at the half.
Intent on obtaining the lead, Oneonta State ushered in the second half of play with a 6-1 surge and never allowed the margin to get too far out of hand for the remainder of the contest.
Mikey McElroy served as the primary instigator of the run, slinging in four of the Red Dragons' six markers. Moody recorded the Cardinals' only point during the first 2:46 with a make at the foul stripe. Trading 4-0 runs, the squads were knotted at 46 with 15:21 remaining before Plattsburgh State took off on a 9-0 run.
Reggie Williams started the surge with a layup, and Mitchell knocked down an off-balance triple late in the shot clock before Moody concluded the one-sided offensive spree with four more points.
Each time the Red Dragons crept closer, the Cardinals would provide a response. After Frankie Kelly split a pair at the foul line, Richardson threw in his third triple of the night to keep Plattsburgh State ahead by five, 63-58, with 6:22 to go.
Another factor worked its way into the game's equation as Zuvic and McElroy captained a 13-4 run which brought the pro-Red Dragon contingent to its feet.
Much like what happened in the previous meeting between the two SUNYAC foes, it was Kelly who appeared to manufacture a game-clinching play down the stretch. Twirling toward the rim, the junior located Zuvic on the far baseline and shot a pinpoint pass to him. Zuvic finished off the play by pumping in his short jumper which gave the home team a 70-67 edge with just over a minute remaining.
Coleman split a pair at the foul line before Mitchell's crucial three and the Cardinals' swarming defense forced two Oneonta State turnovers in the last minute while Moody sealed the deal on the other end.
Other than Moody, Mitchell and Richardson each reached double-digits for the Cardinals by amassing 12 points apiece. Williams finished with nine points and game-high eight rebounds.
Coleman (17), Zuvic (15) and McElroy (14) were the top three point producers for Oneonta State.
The next goal for the Cardinals will be a season sweep of the New Paltz Hawks. Plattsburgh State seeks to go 2-0 in its latest conference road swing when it meets up with the Hawks at the Hawk Center at 2 p.m. on Saturday.
