The Oswego State men’s basketball team maintained their remarkable season streak with two more wins against SUNY Geneseo and SUNY Brockport on Feb. 9 and 10.

The Lakers’ first game was facing the Knights on the road. The game had two very different halves: the first half being very close and the second with the Lakers dominating, ending at a score of 79- 59.

During the opening three minutes, the game was back and forth for both teams, with Jeremiah Sparks scoring four points to tie it at 7-7. From then on, the Lakers missed a considerable sequence of shots and went four minutes without scoring a point. The Knights took advantage to open an eight-point lead, including two three-pointers and a layup. Ahkee Anderson also reduced the score with a three-pointer, but Michael Gentile also hit a three-pointer.

Anderson hit another one and soon saw the lead increase again after the Knights took a 21-13 lead. The turnaround began ten minutes into the first half, with Kenny Lazo scoring a three-pointer. After two minutes, the Lakers took the lead until the end of the first half, finishing with a seven-point lead and 39-32. It was a remarkable day for Lazo, who scored 10 points for the Lakers in the final stretch.

During the first half, the Lakers had 23 bench points compared to the Knights’ one. The Lakers had to maintain the momentum at the end of the first half to win the second. 

During the second half, the Lakers dominated the scoring side of the ball. The half started with both teams scoring for each side. However, they never ended up with an advantage exceeding six points. With 16 minutes left, the Lakers opened up a 10-point lead and found themselves with the game in their hands. Even with the lead, the Lakers continued to press but missed three opportunities to score.

After two minutes without anyone scoring, the Knights reduced their lead to eight points. The Lakers opened up a 22-point lead with seven minutes left in the game. The Knights even managed to decrease the lead a little to 14, but Lazo scored another three-pointer, regaining the team’s confidence to finish the game and see his team end with a 20-point lead away from home.

At the end of the game, Oswego maintained their 17-win streak against Geneseo, not losing a single game since 2016. The man of the match was Lazo, scoring 25 points.

The Lakers also faced the Golden Eagles away from home and won, but this time, with a very tight score. Brockport is in third place in the SUNYAC.

The game started with the Golden Eagles scoring the first 11 points as the Lakers went scoreless for five minutes. The Lakers missed many opportunities to reduce the score, and the chance came when Ahkee scored a good three-pointer. From then on, both teams scored consecutively until the Lakers began a run to almost tie the score with nine minutes left in the first half. 

The Lakers tied the score with four minutes left in the half, after which they managed to go into the break with a five-point lead on the scoreboard, making it 33-28. During the entire second half, the Lakers managed to maintain their advantage and increased it little by little. At no point in the second half did the Lakers lose their lead. The smallest deficit the Knights were under was two points. The game ended with a 69-61 score for the Lakers.

Sparks was the man of the match, scoring many free throws to keep his team in the lead. He had a double-double, scoring 19 points and securing 12 rebounds on the day.

The Lakers have two remaining games confirmed against SUNY Fredonia and SUNY Buffalo State on Feb. 16 and 17, both at Max Ziel Gymnasium.

Photo by: Patrick Byrnes