Box Score ALFRED, NY – The Alfred University men's basketball team earned the school's first-ever berth in the Empire 8 Conference championship tournament with a convincing 104-80 victory over Ithaca College Saturday afternoon at the McLane Center.

The Saxons earned a bid to the four-team conference tournament on the final day of the regular season. It marks the first time in the 15-year history of the conference that an AU basketball team – men's or women's – has made the championship tournament.

AU will be seeded fourth in the four-team championships, which will be held Feb. 28 and March 1 at top-seeded Hartwick. The Saxons (18-7, 9-5 Empire 8) play Hartwick in one semifinal game on Friday (time TBA) while second-seeded Stevens will take on third-seeded Nazareth in the other semifinal. The semifinal winners will play on Saturday for the tournament title and the league's automatic bid to the NCAA Division III championship tournament.

Saturday's game against Ithaca was never in doubt, as the Saxons raced to a 52-31 halftime lead against the Bombers. The Saxons shot 54 percent (21 of 39) from the field, making eight shots from three-point range and forcing eight Ithaca turnovers in the game's first 20 minutes. Junior guard Mike Snyder (Pulaski, NY/Pulaski) paced AU in the first half, scoring 11 points on four-of-five shooting (three of four from behind the three-point arc).

Alfred cooled down somewhat in the second half, making 37 percent of its shots, but still outscored Ithaca 52-49. The Saxons made seven more three-pointers after intermission and helped their cause by forcing eight more Bomber turnovers. For the game, Alfred forced 16 Ithaca miscues while committing only nine. AU shot 48 percent from the floor for the game while holding Ithaca to 38-percent shooting.

Freshman guard Tyler Seelman (Lorton, VA/Hayfield Secondary) led Alfred with a game-high 17 points, while Snyder and freshman guard Dylan Molloy (Clifton Park, NY/Shenendehowa) each added 11 points and two assists.

Sophomore forward Jerry Kincel (Moosic, PA/Riverside) (eight points) and junior forward Jeremy Johnson (Martinsburg, WV/Martinsburg (Shepherd University)) (seven points) shared the team lead in rebounds with five. Senior guard Thomas Tsatsis (Neponsit, NY/Townsend Harris) had a solid all-around game with seven points, seven assists and six steals.

Frank Mitchell led Ithaca (7-18, 2-12 Empire 8) with 16 points and 11 rebounds. Keefe Gitto had 13 points and seven boards and Chris Jordan chipped in with 11 points.