Senior guard Kyle Reuter (Mexico) was one of three starters in double figures, scoring a game-high 30 points to go with three steals, but Oswego State could not hold on to an early 10 point lead in the second half while host St. John Fisher College survived a back and forth shootout in the final seven minutes en route to a 72-71 victory in the semifinals of the Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC) Upstate Championships on Friday, March 6 at Fisher's Manning/Napier Gymnasium.

The Lakers, seeded third in the tournament field, finish the 2008-09 season with a 16-11 record, while the second-seeded Cardinals (17-9) advanced to Saturday's championship, taking on fourth-seeded and fellow conference rival Hartwick. The Hawks defeated top seed Fredonia in the second semifinal, 52-50.

Reuter shot 12 of 19 from the floor, going 3-for-8 from the three-point line, hit all three of his free-throw attempts, and compiled three steals in 33 minutes of action. He competes his four-year career as a Laker with 1,446 points, ranking seventh on the all-time scoring list, and finishes as one of the top free-throw shooters in school history with an .850 percentage (102-for-120).

Freshman Chad Burridge (Hannibal) followed with 14 points, rebounds, and a blocked shot, while senior Tommy Downing (Staten Island/Curtis) added 13 points and a pair of assists.  Downing caps his collegiate career ninth on the all-time scoring list with 1,337 points.

Freshman Conor Monaghan (Brooklyn/Xavier) added six points, three assist, and two blocks, while Junior Stanley Francois (Valley Cottage/SUNY Cobleskill) contributed five points and eight rebounds.

Oswego opened with a 15-10 lead 6:27 into the first half, with Reuter scoring 11 points in the run.  Fisher answered with a 15-5 run over a nine minute stretch to jump out to a 25-20 advantage with 5:26 to play in the half. The Cardinals would hold the lead throughout the remainder of the half, but the Lakers pulled to within a point on two occasions, the last coming on a three-pointer by Downing with 1:11 remaining to cut Fisher's lead to 32-31 at halftime.

Fisher opened the second half with a three-pointer from Ozell Franklin before Oswego went on a 19-5 run behind nine points from Reuter and four points each from Burridge and Monaghan to take its biggest lead of the game, 50-40, 6:03 into the half. Fisher responded with a 15-2 run to retake the lead, 55-52 with 6:02 to play in the game.

There were four ties and seven lead changes over the game's final 5:06. The Lakers took their final lead of the game on a three-pointer from Reuter to take a 66-65 lead with 2:41 remaining before the Cardinals took the lead for good on back-to-back baskets from Franklin and Michael Wopperer for a 69-66 lead with 1:34 to play. Reuter's layup tied the game for a final time at 69-69 with 1:14 left on the clock before Fisher hit three of four free throws on two Oswego personal fouls for 72-69 lead with 15 seconds to go.

Oswego had a chance to send the game into overtime as Downing was fouled attempting a three-pointer with 3.9 seconds remaining. He hit the first two free throws before Fisher called a timeout, but missed the third. Sophomore Jose Uribe (Far Rockaway/Newtown) got the offensive rebound, but missed on the putback jumper as time expired.

Wopperer was the high scorer for Fisher (17-9) with 18 points, going 9-for-12 from the field, and added seven rebounds, four steals and a block.  Matt Newman added 15 points, while Franklin followed with 14, eight rebounds, and two blocks.