ALFRED, NY – The Alfred University men's basketball team played host to Rochester Institute of Technology on Tuesday night. The Saxons (3-3) were defeated by the Tigers by a score of 78-69.
 
An early run fueled by some RIT three pointers put the Saxons into a 25-14 hole at the halfway point of the first half.
 
Alfred had trouble climbing out of that hole and went into the halftime break down 48-37.
 
A few buckets in the paint helped RIT extend its lead up to 13 in the opening minutes of the second half.
 
The Saxons tried to make a run with multiple three's in the second half but the Tigers had an answer every time.
 
AU was able to creep to within seven with just under a minute left to play but could not get any closer as RIT improved to 3-2 on the year.

"RIT was the tougher team tonight. We didn't do a good enough job to make it tough for them on the offensive end as they shot over 51% for the game," Head Coach Russell Phillips said.  "Collectively we need to continue to improve."
 
Elliot Bowen (Salamanca, NY / Ellicottville) had a tremendous game down low for the Saxons with a game high 26 points, 11 rebounds and four steals. Cole Eells (Ithaca, NY / Ithaca) was 6-11 from beyond the arc for 18 points on the evening. Mike Schmidt (Olean, NY / Olean) finished with 10 points and four assists.
 
The Saxons will be off until December 7^th when they travel to Sarah Lawrence College for a 12PM start.