ALFRED, NY – The Alfred University men's basketball team outscored St. John Fisher University in both halves as part of an 82-71 win on Saturday afternoon from the Terry S. Galanis Family Arena.
The Saxons (14-5, 9-3 Empire 8) shot 44.8 percent from the field, while the Cardinals (12-6, 8-3 Empire 8) were held to just one successful 3-point shot. The win for Alfred University marks the first time in which they have swept St. John Fisher in the regular season since the 2018-19 season. During that particular season, the men's basketball program went on to win the Empire 8 Championship.
Alfred University was led by
Brewster Marshall (Horseheads, NY/Horseheads), who finished with 23 points, nine rebounds, four assists and four blocks.
Casey Curran (Allegany, NY/Allegany-Limestone) totaled 15 points, eight rebounds and three assists.
Adam Enders (Belfast, NY/Belfast) added 15 points for AU.
"I'm really proud of our guys for how we bounced back today after a tough one last night," Head Coach
Erich Kaempffe said. "Fisher is a terrific program, and they do a great job. We have a ton of respect for them."
Enders, Marshall, and Curran each had 3-point plays as part of an opening 9-3 run for the Saxons. Moments later, a shot from beyond the arc from Curran extended AU's lead to double-digits with just over 11 minutes left in the half. The Cardinals found some open shots of their own, but the Saxons still led 38-35 going into the break.
Alfred University relied on a deep shot from
Mike Schmidt (Olean, NY/Olean) to begin the second half. A 3-point shot from
Kevin Durkin (Buffalo, NY/St. Joseph's Collegiate) was followed by a layup from Marshall to extend Alfred University's lead back to 12 points with seven minutes to play. St. John Fisher tried to climb back into the game, but AU scored seven points across the final two minutes to hold on for the win.
"We need to rest up and get better," Kaempffe said. "I'm confident we can accomplish both this week."
Alfred University will next return to action on Friday when they travel to Russell Sage College for a 7:30 PM matchup.
