PLATTSBURGH, N.Y. – Despite trailing by just two points at the half, the Plattsburgh State men's basketball team dropped a 63-44 State University of New York Athletic Conference (SUNYAC) game to reigning conference champion Oswego State on Saturday afternoon at Memorial Hall.
 
Undermanned without senior guard Nick DeAngelis (West Milford, N.J./West Milford) and senior forward Adam Jaquish (Moriah, N.Y./Moriah), Plattsburgh State shot just 29.8 percent (17-of-57) from the field and 12.5 percent (2-of-16) from 3-point range, while Oswego held a 54-33 edge in rebounds. The Cardinals did clamp down defensively in holding the Lakers to 34.9 percent (22-of-63) shooting from the floor and 16.7 percent (5-of-30) shooting from 3-point range, and Plattsburgh State forced Oswego into 13 turnovers, netting nine points off those giveaways.
 
Plattsburgh State falls to 6-10 overall (3-6 SUNYAC) with the loss and opens up the second half of conference play on the road against SUNY Geneseo on Friday, Jan. 31, at 7:30 p.m. Oswego rises to 12-4 overall (6-3 SUNYAC) with the win and next visits Buffalo State on Friday, Jan. 31, at 5:30 p.m.
 
Oswego jumped out to a 7-2 lead and built a five-point cushion two more times until a 7-0 Cardinal surge capped off by a layup by junior guard Travis Cox (Brooklyn, N.Y./Frederick Douglass Academy) handed Plattsburgh State a 13-11 advantage. The two teams traded points until the Lakers constructed a 27-23 advantage on the strength of seven unanswered points. Cox hit a pair of free throws with 36 seconds left in the first half to draw Plattsburgh State within 27-25 heading into the locker rooms.
 
The Lakers' sophomore forward Jordan Brown opened up the second half with a dunk on the opening possession, and while Plattsburgh State netted five straight points courtesy of a Cox 3-pointer and a layup by freshman forward Erik Salo (Delmar, N.Y./Bethlehem Central) after going down 41-32 to pull within four, a 12-1 Oswego run broke the game open.
 
Cox and freshman guard Axel Rodriguez (Brooklyn, N.Y./New Paltz) led the Cardinals' offense with 14 and 13 points, respectively, while Cox added seven rebounds. Salo posted a solid seven-point, eight-rebound effort, while junior guard Matt Bernhard (Voorheesville, N.Y./Voorheesville) tallied a career-high two steals.
 
For Oswego, senior guard Brandan Gartland (14 points), senior forward Joe Sullivan (10 points) and Brown (10 points) all notched double figures, with Brown completing the double-double with 12 rebounds. Junior guard Liam Sanborn pulled down a game-high 13 rebounds, all of which came on the defensive glass, and doled out a game-high four assists.