The SUNYAC playoffs for men’s basketball officially ended and the Oswego State Lakers were not the champions. The Lakers first matchup in the playoffs was against the SUNY Cortland Red Dragons, a team that has been on the cusp of beating the Lakers this season.

The Lakers tried to set the tone early, putting up 3-point shots one after another. However, after three misses, it was the Red Dragons who set the tone, already up 5-0 in the opening minute of the game. The Lakers finally put some points up with a Jamal Achille layup, but a responding 3-pointer flattened the momentum. After a shooting foul from Kenny Lazo, the Red Dragons were up 12-7. A shot from Cartier Bowman, then a 3-point play from Ahkee Anderson and the Lakers were back in it. 

The score was 14-12 until Bowman stripped the ball from the Red Dragons, broke out on the fastbreak and slammed the ball for a tie game. The lead traveled back-and-forth, until the Red Dragons went on an eight-point run halfway through the first and found themselves up seven. That was until Jerimiah Sparks splashed a 3-pointer to end the half at a score of 44-35.

Cartier Bowman opened the scoring for the Lakers in the second half with a free throw, which was promptly followed by a defensive rebound that assisted Anderson in a 3-pointer. Anderson followed that by rallying the Lakers fans with a driving layup, slowly chipping that Red Dragons lead to nine. Later in the half, the Lakers were still down eight before a Sparks steal into a fastbreak layup, driving the lead down to six. The Red Dragons responded with a jumper and the Lakers followed that up with back-to-back 3-pointers from Sparks and Kaleb Cook. 

The Lakers finally got their first lead of the second half thanks to a defensive rebound by Bowman that led to a layup. The teams traded blows, until a 3-pointer from Anderson tied the game back up. Then the Red Dragons fouled Anderson in another 3-point attempt and he hit all three free throws. Sparks snagged a steal on the next Red Dragons possession and put the Lakers up five. The lead did not change after this, as the Red Dragons could not do anything in the final two minutes, giving the Lakers the win, 76-68.

The Lakers moved on to the SUNYAC championship where they faced the SUNY New Paltz Hawks. The Lakers faced the Hawks back on Jan. 30, where Oswego barely scraped by, winning 84-83. However, it was the Hawks who came back to win in this matchup, handing the Lakers their first conference loss this season.

The teams traded shots back and forth in the first couple minutes of the game, and after a 3-pointer by Anderson, the Hawks were still up 8-7. Layups and jumpers from both sides later, and it was still a one-point game halfway through the first.

The Hawks were still up 20-19. The Hawks subsequently caught fire, drilling a 3-pointer and converting a fastbreak layup to go up 29-21 with seven minutes to spare. A 3-point foul from the Hawks, in which Cook hit all of his free throws and 2 3-pointers from Julien Crittendon later, the Lakers were only down one again. The Lakers went on a run in the final minutes of the first half, giving them a 45-41 lead going into halftime.

Sparks sent the arena into madness, kicking off the second half with back-to-back 3-pointers. After two jumpers from Lazo, the Lakers were up 60-46 with 14 minutes left. That lead started to dwindle as the clock ticked; a jumper brought it down to 12, then nine, then eight before a Cook 3-pointer brought it back into double-digits.

The Lakers headed into foul trouble that brought the Hawks’ deficit to six, then a fastbreak layup brought it to four. Suddenly, with under six minutes left in the game, that lead the Lakers had was gone. The Lakers went ice-cold following the tie-breaking score and the Hawks were still on fire, up eight with under three minutes left. The Lakers never found the lead again after losing it; in the final minute, Sparks hit a basket to make it 81-80. The Hawks followed this by making their free throws, handing the Lakers their first conference loss of the season in the SUNYAC Championship. 

The Lakers’ season is still not finished, as the men’s basketball team has officially made the NCAA Div.III tournament for the third season in a row. The Lakers will play host once again this year starting March 1 against Babson College.

    Photo by: Vanessa Choquette