Box Score
Chad Burridge poured in 21 points to reach the 1,000-point plateau and help the Oswego State men's basketball team survive a late Cortland charge en route to a 68-60 victory Saturday afternoon in Cortland. Burridge needed 19 points heading into the contest and reached the milestone 2:53 into the second half with a jumper assisted by Ryan Sheridan. The win moved the Lakers to 7-2 overall and 3-0 in SUNYAC play, while the Red Dragons dropped to 3-7 overall and 0-3 in the league.
Burridge scored 15 points in the first half to help Oswego State establish a 32-19 halftime lead. Cortland drew within nine at 39-30 on two Hefele free throws with 15:15 left, but the Lakers responded with a 12-2 run, including three-pointers by Sean Michele and Conor Monaghan, and took its largest lead at 51-32 with 11:52 remaining.
Oswego State still held a 59-44 advantage with 4:15 left before Cortland fought back to make the game tight. McMahon scored the Red Dragons' next six points to help cut the deficit to 61-50 with 2:24 left. Connolly hit a three-pointer at the 1:44 mark and one McMahon foul shot with 1:12 left brought the Red Dragons within seven at 61-54.
Following two missed Laker foul shots, Hefele hit a three-pointer with 47 seconds left and Cortland trailed by four. Brian Gebhardt sank two free throws for Oswego State with 40 seconds left to push the lead to six, but Connolly's trey with 29 seconds remaining made it a three-point game.
Michele was immediately fouled and hit two foul shots with 28 seconds left to give the Lakers a five-point lead. Cortland missed two contested layups on its next possession, one blocked by Burridge, and Burridge hit a foul shot with 18 seconds left to push the lead to six. Oswego State grabbed the offensive rebound on Burridge's second free throw attempt and Gebhardt finished the scoring with two free throws with 15 seconds left.
Monaghan added 11 points and six rebounds and Hayden Ward finished with 10 points and six rebounds for the Lakers. John Connolly led Cortland with 17 points and three steals. Connolly hit 3-of-5 three pointers and grabbed five rebounds. Harrison Hefele registered a double-double with 16 points and a career-best 10 rebounds.
Burridge became the 15th player in program history to reach 1,000 career points, and now sits at 1,002. He also joins his brother, Mat, who scored 1,251 points from 2003-07, in the 1,000-point club.
Oswego State will stay on the road when it faces Oneonta Tuesday at 8 p.m.
(Courtesy of Fran Elia, Cortland Sports Information)
