The Plattsburgh State men’s basketball team (18-4, 15-1) will face the Oneonta Red Dragons (11-12, 7-9) tonight in Memorial Hall at 7:30 p.m. Following tonight’s game, the Cardinals will then play the New Paltz Hawks (7-16, 4-12) at home at 3 p.m.
Having clinched the No.1 seed in the SUNYAC conference, PSUC will enter the upcoming weekend of games with an eye on padding its already dominant record.
Five teams have already clinched a playoff spot. Besides the Cards, the College at Brockport, SUNY Cortland, SUNY Geneseo and SUNY Oswego have all punched their ticket for a postseason appearance, leaving only one spot left for the taking.
The Red Dragons are one of only two teams who have yet to be eliminated or claim a playoff spot, but the race for the final position isn’t all that competitive. Oneonta holds a 2-game lead over the Potsdam Bears with only two games left in the season.
The Cards will have to contain sophomore guard Kevin Mackin, who is coming off a 22-point outing against the Geneseo Knights.
On the other hand, PSUC’s other opponent, the New Paltz Hawks have already been eliminated from playoff contention.
The Cards are coming off a successful weekend, where the team outscored its opponent by double figures and continued to tack on to its lead in the SUNYAC standings with a commanding 104-76 win over the Potsdam Bears.
Leading PSUC was junior forward Jonathan Patron, who scored 32 points on 11 shots and eight free throws. Patron shot 50 percent from the field and 80 percent from the line.
Behind Patron was teammate and senior guard Eli Bryant with 22 points on 6-16 shooting from the field, 5-6 from the charity stripe and nine assists.
Bryant only needs to score 24 more points in order to reach the 1,000-point career milestone.
Having the No. 1 seed locked down, the Cards will use this weekend to focus on preparing themselves for the intensity of the playoffs.
Email Cardinal Points at sports@cardinalpointsonline.com
