Harris Goes for 35 to Help Gators Hand Nazareth First E8 Loss of the Season
ALBANY, N.Y. – In a matchup between the top two teams in the Empire 8 Conference, Russell Sage College Men’s Basketball handed visiting Nazareth its first E8 loss of the season with an 85-78 victory tonight in the Kahl Campus Center.
| Final | 1 | 2 | T |
|---|---|---|---|
|
|
30 | 48 | 78 |
|
|
41 | 44 | 85 |
Team Stats
Nazareth
| Game Statistics | Nazareth | Russell Sage College |
|---|---|---|
| Field Goals | (31-71) | (28-70) |
| Field Goal % | 43.7% | 40.0% |
| Rebounds | 43 | 49 |
| Assists | 9 | 14 |
| Turnovers | 16 | 12 |
| Pts off Turnovers | 11 | 11 |
| 2nd Chance Pts | 11 | 16 |
| Bench Pts | 14 | 29 |
ALBANY, N.Y. – In a matchup between the top two teams in the Empire 8 Conference, Russell Sage College Men's Basketball handed visiting Nazareth its first E8 loss of the season with an 85-78 victory tonight in the Kahl Campus Center.
The Gators (14-2/6-1 E8), off to their best start in a season, used a 14-2 run spanning 3:47 late in the second half to secure the home win.
Senior Brandon Harris (Elmsford, NY/Alexander Hamilton/Herkimer CC), the Conference leader in steals and steals per-game, keyed the RSC comeback triumph. The guard led all players with 35 points on 13-of-23 shooting and recorded three steals, three rebounds, and two assists. He netted 12 of his points in the final 4:17 to help the Gators, the top offense in the Conference, erase a seven-point second half deficit to win.
The output was second-most in a game by an RSC player. On February 23, 2017 vs. Old Westbury, Rob Mills '17 scored 36 points to send the Gators into the 2017 Skyline Conference Championship Tournament Finals.
Junior guard Pape Tunkara (Mount Vernon, NY/Iona Prep/Genesee CC) filled up the stat sheet with 19 points, seven assists, six rebounds, and a pair of steals.
Junior center Khalel Noteman (Brooklyn, NY/Canarsie) registered a double-double 15 points on 5-of-11 shooting 13 rebounds, while senior forward Jeremy Rosario (Albany, NY/Colonie Central/Alma) added seven points.
"I was most proud tonight of our togetherness down the stretch," commented Head Coach Brian Barnes. "We stuck together when it got tough and found a way to win. Brandon Harris was terrific in the second half and Khalel Noteman was great on the boards. Nazareth is a well coached and experienced team. We knew that this would be a hard fought game and we were going to have to earn it. I am really proud of the poise our team showed down the stretch."
RSC used an 11-3 run spanning 3:45 to take a 41-30 lead into the intermission. Harris netted 14 of his points in the opening period, while Tunkara registered nine points, six rebounds,and five assists.
Nazareth, which saw its five-game winning streak come to a close, followed the break with a 30-17 run to go up 60-58, its first lead since early in the opening half, with 7:33 remaining.
After the Golden Flyers (11-5/6-1 E8), which started the final frame 13-of-22 from the field, extended their advantage to seven, 67-60, with 4:52 to go, the Gators answered with 13 of the next 15 points. A Noteman slam dunk with two minutes left knotted the contest at 69, with Harris scoring the next four points to put RSC up 73-69 with 1:20 left.
The Golden Flyers were able to get it to three on three different occasions during the final minute, but RSC knocked down its foul shots to earn the victory.
Senior Jaylen Savage, who began the week ranked fourth in the Conference in scoring, paced Nazareth with 23 points. The guard, a first-team All-American a season ago, shot 9-of-19 from the field and grabbed eight rebounds.
RSC hosts Saint John Fisher tomorrow afternoon.
"We have another excellent team coming in tomorrow in Saint John Fisher so our guys have to get some rest and come back ready to go," said Barnes.
Gator Bites: The 2025-2026 season marks the 17th for Barnes at the helm of Russell Sage College Men's Basketball…He achieved career win number 200 on November 15 at SUNY Cobleskill...RSC got off to its best five-game (5-0), ten-game (9-1), and 15-game (13-2) starts to a season in program history…The first loss was to top-ranked Trinity…The 2014-2015 edition of the Gators started their season at 6-1 and 7-3 on their way to a 23-5 overall record and capturing the Skyline Conference Tournament Championship, and accompanying NCAA Tournament berth...RSC started that historic season, and also began last year, with a 12-3 record...The Gators commenced the weekend as the top offense in the Conference at 85.7 points per-game…RSC is coming off a trip to the Quarterfinals of the Empire 8 Conference Championship Tournament…Nazareth, which lost both of the regular season meetings to the Gators, used a 33-8 second half run to end the RSC playoff run...Seven players back from last year's squad…Junior guard Deavion Springsteen (Albany, NY/Albany), Noteman, and Harris headline the returners…Harris, voted third-team All-Conference, topped the Gators with 12.9 points per-game last season…The senior converted the game-winning layup with two seconds left in the January 6 overtime victory at Utica…He began the week leading the Conference in both steals and steals per-game and sat sixth at 16.9 points per-game…Harris netted 35 points, the second-most in a game by an RSC player, in the home win vs. Nazareth on January 23...Rob Mills '17 scored 36 to send the Gators in the Finals of that year's Skyline Conference Championship Tournament...Barnes added seven newcomers to the program…Sophomore guard Kyle Dhu (Ozone Park, NY/Brooklyn Law and Tech) was tabbed the E8 Player of the Week for the period ending Sunday, November 16…He averaged 25.5 points on 60.7 percent shooting in the 2-0 week…The sophomore made 61.5 percent of his three-point attempts and totaled 11 rebounds, five steals and four assists across the pair of victories…Tunkara entered the contest ranked second in the E8 with 2.6 steals per-game.
