(BOX SCORE)
BUFFALO, NY—
Jake Simmons (Rochester/School of the Arts) hit late 3-pointers in each half to lift Buffalo State (11-12/9-8) over visiting Cortland (14-10/10-7), 66-62, in a SUNYAC contest tonight at the Sports Arena.
Simmons led the Bengals with 18 points and added four steals.
Antonio Samedi (St. Albans/Queens Vocational) added 17 points and seven rebounds, and
Glenroy Carr (Amherst/Sweet Home) chipped in 10 points.
Dustin Marshall (Newfield/Newfield) paced Cortland with 21 points and nine rebounds. Ben Nagle (Rochester/Aquinas) added 18 points, including 14 in the second half, and grabbed eight rebounds. Brian Manning (Elmira/Elmira Southside) tallied 10 points and also pulled down eight boards.
Buffalo State took a 32-25 advantage in to halftime following a 3-pointer by Simmons with two seconds remaining. Cortland kept things tight in the second half and took the lead on four separate occasions. Trailing 65-62 late in the game, Manning evened the score for Cortland with a long three with 15 seconds remaining. Buffalo State raced down the floor and Simmons answered with his third 3-pointer of the game with eight ticks remaining to put the Bengals back in front at 65-62. After a Cortland turnover, Buffalo State hit 1 of 2 free throws with a second left to complete the scoring. The Bengals shot 48-percent from the field for the game, compared to 37-percent shooting by the Red Dragons.
Buffalo State held a tribute for the late three-sport All-American Randy Smith during halftime.
Smith, who passed away from a heart attack while working out last June, is the consensus greatest student-athlete in Buffalo State history. An All-American in basketball, soccer and track and field during his days at the college, he went on to play 12 seasons in the NBA, including seven with the hometown Buffalo Braves. In addition to earning the NBA “Iron Man” distinction for playing in 906 consecutive games, Smith was named MVP of the 1978 NBA All-Star game.
The Bengals will conclude the regular season tomorrow at home against Oswego at 4 p.m.
