OLEAN, N.Y. – The Alfred University men's basketball team got its first taste of action in the 2019-20 season, kicking things off with a 90-45 exhibition loss to Division I St. Bonaventure from the Reilly Center Wednesday evening.
 
The Saxons shot 30.9 percent (17-of-55) from the field in the contest. Mike Schmidt (Olean, N.Y./Olean) led the Saxons in scoring with eight points, making 3-of-5 shots from the field. The rookie also added three assists, three rebounds, and one steal. Brewster Marshall (Horseheads, N.Y./Horseheads) added seven points and five points, shooting 50 percent (3-for-6) from the field. Sam Dagon (Hornell, N.Y./Hornell) and Kevin Durkin (Buffalo, N.Y./St. Joseph's Collegiate Institute) chipped in five and four points, respectively.
 
St. Bonaventure shot 46.7 percent (35-of-75) from the field, and out-rebounded the Saxons by a 50-36 margin. Alejandro Vasquez led the Bonnies with 20 points on 7-of-14 shooting for the field. Robert Carpenter added 10 points and nine rebounds, while Alpha Okoli added 10 points and seven rebounds, both coming off the bench. Bobby Planutis chipped in 11 points and two steals.
 
The Saxons got off to a solid start, scoring on its first two shots from the field. The Bonnies then jumped out to a 14-0 run, grabbing the double-digit lead, before Schmidt broke the Bonaventure run with the lefty layup.
 
The basket seemed to calm the nerves of the Saxon players, hitting three of their next five shot attempts, bringing the deficit to eight, at 18-10. The Bonnies brought the lead back over the double-digit mark, but the Saxons hung around for most of the half, as the Bonnie lead hung between 12 and 15.
 
A layup by Elliot Bowen (Salamanca, N.Y./Ellicotville) off a nifty Dagon pass bought the deficit to 11 with under five seconds left in the half. The Bonnies raced down the court off a quick inbounds pass, beating the halftime buzzer with a righty layup by Matt Johnson as the Bonnies took a 34-21 lead into halftime.
 
Alfred once again started fast in the second half, as Cole Eells (Ithaca, N.Y./Ithaca) and Dagon converted on layups. St. Bonaventure's pressure defense took advantage in the second half, forcing Alfred turnovers as it stretched its lead above 20 in the first 10 minutes. The Bonnies eventually stretched its lead out to as many as 46 points, as both teams cleared out their benches.
 
The Saxons will compete in a few scrimmages before kicking off the regular season in earnest on the road at Westfield State Saturday, Nov. 9.