By Nicholas Newcomb
An 85-72 loss to No. 3 seeded Oneonta marked the third consecutive year in-a-row in which The College at Brockport men’s basketball team has lost in the semifinals of the State University of New York Athletic Conference’s playoffs.
I made a few predictions and offered a few story lines to follow and while some of them may not have panned out, I would still argue I was mostly correct.
It’s hard to beat a team three times in one season: Brockport beat Oneonta twice during the regular season and in each match up both teams scored 80+ plus points. The one thing, if you want to nit-pick, that Brockport was missing was a solid low post defender and scorer. Oneonta’s Lawrence Coleman, who finished as the league’s fourth leading scorer, dominated posting 24 points and 16 rebounds. The Golden Eagles did somehow shut down Oneonta’s leading scorer Mikey McElroy who finished with 14.
Oswego was waiting at the finals: Predicting Oswego to make it to the finals was a no-brainer. Senior guard Brian Sortino was unstoppable in the Lakers’ two games. In the semifinal game against Buffalo State Sortino poured in 48 points as Oswego narrowly escaped 80-78 in overtime. In the finals against Oneonta, Sortino scored a game-high 27 points and was named SUNYAC tournament Most Valuable Player.
While is was a disappointing postseason for the Golden Eagles, you could still argue it was one of the team’s best season-long performances.
Brockport graduating seniors: Mitch Cote, Devonn Gavin, Cordell Torres, Clifton Lyerly, Marcus Blythers, Matthew Smith.
SUNYAC All-Tournament Team: Lovell Smith – Buffalo State; Mikey McElroy – Oneonta; Lawrence Coleman – Oneonta; Ian Schupp – Oswego; Tyler Pierre – Oswego ; MVP – Brian Sortino – Oswego
Brockport Beat 
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