Bison fall to Geneseo in tournament final, 80-59

Andrew Woodley, Sports Information Director

CLEVELAND (Dec. 30) – The Bethany College men's basketball team was dealt an 80-59 loss by SUNY Geneseo Friday afternoon in the championship game of the Bill Sudeck Holiday Tournament hosted by Case Western Reserve.

The loss drops the Bison to 6-5 overall and concludes the team's non-conference schedule this season. Meanwhile, the Knights, members of the State University of New York Athletic Conference (SUNYAC), improve to 8-3 this season.

Junior guard Andrew Williams (Oil City, Pa./Oil City) led the team with 17 points, while classmate Calique Jones added 14 points and five boards in the loss. For his performance during the event, Jones was named to the all-tournament team.

The Green & White opened the contest with a 6-1 lead over the first two minutes and maintained the lead until the 14:30 mark, when Geneseo took a 14-13 edge on a layup. The Knights held the lead over the next seven minutes, but never by more than four points, as the two teams traded baskets.

A trey by senior forward Javonte Trujillo (Aurora, Colo./Grandview) regained the lead for the Bison at 30-29 with just over seven minutes left until halftime. Geneseo responded with seven-unanswered points to take a 36-30 advantage with 4:29 remaining in the first half, forcing a Bethany timeout. Both teams struggled from the field over the final four minutes of the first half, with Geneseo clinging to a 38-35 lead.

A three pointer by Williams and a pair of free throws by Jones helped the Green & White regain the lead at 40-38 lead less than two minutes into the second half. That would be the final time the Bison took the lead, as the Knights went on a 18-3 run to take a 56-43 lead with 11:57 left in the game. Geneseo continued to build onto its lead over the final 10 minutes of the game and secured the victory.

Bethany finished the game 22-for-67 (39 percent) from the field, including 8-for-26 (31 percent) from long distance, while the Knights shot 28-for-53 (53 percent) overall and 10-for-27 (37 percent) from three-point range.

John Decker led the Geneseo with 19 points in only 18 minutes on the court to help the Knights claim the Bill Sudeck Championship. He was later named the tournament's most valuable player.

The Bison head back into Presidents' Athletic Conference play on Thursday, January 5 when they visit Latrobe, Pennsylvania to take on Saint Vincent around 7:30 p.m.