The Keuka College men’s basketball team edged host SUNY Geneseo 55-53 in the semifinals of the Empire 8 Conference Men’s Basketball Championship Tournament.
Keuka College (14-13, 9-7 Empire 8) advances to the Empire 8 Championship game for the first time in program history and will play in its first conference title game overall since the 2002-03 season.
Lamar Lovelace led the Wolves with 23 points. Kaleb Nutifafa added nine points and grabbed a team-high 10 rebounds.
#7 Keuka College 55, #3 SUNY Geneseo 53 – Empire 8 Tournament Semifinals
Geneseo opened the game with momentum, knocking down its first two three-pointers to jump out to an 8-2 lead. Keuka responded and chipped away at the deficit. Lovelace found Nutifafa under the basket to tie the game at 12-12. The Wolves then surged ahead, holding the Knights scoreless for more than six minutes.
The teams traded the lead as halftime approached. Kevin Felasco hit a three-pointer to put Keuka in front 25-22, and the Wolves carried a 27-23 advantage into the break.
Keuka extended its lead to 10 early in the second half. Lovelace drained a deep three and later assisted Quinn VanKerkhove for another triple on the break to make it 35-25 five minutes into the half. Malik Junious-Fuller added to the run with a drive to the basket and a three-point play.
Geneseo answered with nine straight points to cut the deficit to 38-34, and the Knights’ run eventually reached 13, tying the game with nine minutes remaining. Lovelace responded with a pull-up jumper to regain the lead for Keuka.
A Geneseo three-pointer put the Knights ahead 47-45 with five minutes to play, but the Wolves continued to battle. Lovelace hit a fadeaway jumper to give Keuka a four-point cushion with 2:33 left. He later assisted Makya Morrison for a dunk and an and-one, pushing the lead to six.
Geneseo chipped away at the free-throw line to make it a 55-53 game with under a minute remaining. Keuka missed the front end of a one-and-one with six seconds left, but the Knights’ final shot fell short, sealing the two-point victory for the Wolves.
Keuka Notes
- The win marks Keuka’s first victory at Geneseo in program history. The Wolves are now 4-14 all-time against the Knights.
- It is the third conference championship appearance in program history and the first since competing in the North Eastern Athletic Conference in the early 2000s.
- Keuka won the rebounding battle 41-34, with Morrison adding nine rebounds.
Up Next
Keuka will travel to face SUNY Brockport in the conference championship on Saturday at 2 p.m. The Wolves defeated the Golden Eagles 65-62 in January, but Brockport earned the higher seed and will host the title game.
