CANTON, NY – Junior forward Sage Brown (Cortland, NY/Cortland) scored 20 points and grabbed 16 rebounds (10 offense, six defense) as the Alfred University men's basketball team edged out SUNY Canton Saturday afternoon, 89-85.
 
The Saxons (6-1, 0-0 Empire 8) were also led offensive by senior guard Nick Schmidt (Olean, NY/Olean) as he finished with 20 points including six made three-point attempts with junior guard Dom LeMorta (Scotia, NY/Scotia-Glenville) having 17 points. Junior guard Scotty Stopera (Scotia, NY/Scotia-Glenville) had nine assists to go along with 13 points. Senior forward Tristin Hook (Red Bank, NJ/Middletown North) was also a force on the glass, grabbing 10 rebounds (seven offense, three defense).
 
The Roos started the game, scoring the first five points before LeMorta knocked a three to chip into the lead, making it 5-3 with just over a minute off the clock. Canton went on a little 6-2 run before Schmidt hit his own three-pointer to make it 11-8 with 16:54 to go in the first half.
 
Alfred's first lead of the contest came at the 6:39 mark as LeMorta drained another three-pointer, giving the Saxons the 29-27 advantage. Alfred extended its lead to five as senior forward Dalton Cousin (Sherrill, NY/Vernon-Verona-Sherrill) converted his and-one opportunity. Canton was able to regain the lead as Jordan Stewart converted a three to give the Roos the 37-35 lead with 2:46 to go in the half. Brown was able to tie it up after his layup before Canton closed out the quarter on a 4-2 run.
 
"It was a gritty win" said Head Coach Russ Phillips. "Credit to Canton, they came ready to play and we were fortunate to come away with the win. We did a great job on the offensive boards and were able to steal some extra possessions late which helped us close it out."
 
Canton came out of halftime scoring on their first possession as Andrew Fitch extended the lead to four as he made the layup off the assist from Adrian Williams. Alfred was able to knot the game up at 48 as Brown found Schmidt for a three to help swing the momentum. With the hot hand, Schmidt recaptured the lead for good as he made another three, this time Stopera had the assist.
 
The Saxons biggest lead came at the 14:22 mark as Brown pushed the lead to 10 as he knocked down both of his free throw attempts. Canton was able to cut the lead down to two on a few occasions but the Alfred defense stood superior. Stewart was able to make it a one possession game with the made layup with 0:10 remaining in regulation before sophomore guard Sam Dagon (Hornell, NY/Hornell) put the game on ice, making both of his free throw opportunities.
 
The Saxons finished with 22 offensive rebounds which helped them to edge out Canton in second chance points, 23-21. Canton had a presence in the paint, outscoring Alfred 48-30.
 
The Saxons will next travel to Cleveland, OH to take on Case Western Reserve University in the first round of the Bill Sudeck Holiday Tournament on December 29 at 7 PM.