PLATTSBURGH, N.Y. – Four Cardinals reached double figures in scoring, but the Plattsburgh State men's basketball team dropped an 82-61 decision to non-conference Middlebury College on Wednesday night at Memorial Hall in its final game of the 2021 portion of its schedule.
 
First-year guard Kevin Tabb (Brooklyn, N.Y./Thomas Jefferson) led the Cardinal attack with 11 points and added a game-high three steals, while senior guard Marlon Todd (Bronx, N.Y./Eagle Academy for Young Men), senior guard/forward Sheriff Conteh (Bronx, N.Y./Our Saviour Lutheran) and junior center Cameron Ness (Clintondale, N.Y./Highland) all netted 10 points. Todd's total served as a career high. Conteh dished out four assists and grabbed six boards, while Ness pulled down seven rebounds.
 
For Middlebury, junior forward Alex Sobel scored 22 points and 15 rebounds to record a double-double, and he also added four blocks and four assists. First-year guard Sam Stevens and sophomore guard Noah Osher netted 15 and 13 points, respectively.
 
The Cardinals shot well from the floor (43.5 percent – 27-of-62) but were hurt by 18.8 percent (3-of-16) shooting at the line. The Panthers shot 45.3 percent (29-of-64) from the field and 72.4 percent (21-of-29) from the charity stripe in addition to owning a 51-30 edge in rebounds.
 
Plattsburgh State falls to 1-8 overall with the loss and kicks off the New Year on Monday, Jan. 3, when it visits Clarkson University for a 3 p.m. contest. Middlebury rises to 8-2 overall with the win and hosts Skidmore College next on Friday, Dec. 10, at 7 p.m.
 
The two teams traded points early until Plattsburgh State went on a 7-0 run, and a jumper by Todd staked the Cardinals to a 14-8 advantage through 4:43 of play. Middlebury eventually scored 10 unanswered points to take a 22-16 lead, and the visitors never trailed from that point forward. While the Panthers opened up a 19-point advantage with 2:17 to go in the opening stanza, Plattsburgh State closed the half on a 6-0 tear, and sophomore guard/forward Justin Blanchett (Bronx, N.Y./Cardinal Hayes) went 1-of-2 at the line with less than a second left in the opening period to cut the gap to 47-34 heading into the locker rooms.
 
The momentum seesawed back and forth in the early stages of the second half, and while the Panthers took a 12-point lead (60-48) with 12:26 remaining, Plattsburgh State pulled within four points following an eight-point scoring spree. Blanchett made a layup and Ness hit a jumper to start the run, while Tabb scored on back-to-back possessions to trim the deficit to 60-56 with 10:34 left. Middlebury put the game out of reach with a 12-0 surge and posted its largest lead of the game when junior forward Peter Carlson extended the Panther edge to 82-61 with 38 seconds to go.