Strong second half advances Generals to Region III semifinals

CANANDIAGUA, NY – Following suit with all of the higher seeds Friday (2/27) night on Putt Moore Court at Finger Lakes Community College, the Herkimer Generals men's basketball team defeated Fulton-Montgomery for a third time this season, advancing to the NJCAA Region III Semifinals.

Herkimer (27-3, 17-1) let the Raiders hang around in the first half despite getting a strong performance from sophomore Ken Woodard (Bronx, NY), collecting 14 first half points. Poor shooting from the rest of the team contributed to this, just over 30 percent, and a 5-0 run by the Raiders only had Herkimer up by three (31-28) at intermission.

The Generals didn't build on the lead until point guard Julio Galay (Bronx, NY) scored his only five points of the game in the span of 24 seconds, sinking a jumper and completing an 'and one' play for the largest lead of the game at that time, 48-39, with 10:34 left in regulation. He also added two rebounds and one assist to his totals.

It took a Daniel Owens (Albany, NY) steal and assist to Carson Murphy (Mohawk, NY) for the game's first double digit lead (52-42) with 6:25 left in regulation. Owens finished with 10 points, seven rebounds and two steals. Murphy finished with the game's only double double, accumulating 11 points, 11 rebounds, two steals and two blocks.

The lead ballooned to 16 (61-45) after Woodard, Dantre Langhorne (Greenport, NY) and Jamell Johnson (Rochester, NY) scored on layups with 1:47 left in regulation. Woodard and Johnson tied for a game-high 16, while Langhorne scored two points in 21 minutes, sitting most of the game with foul trouble.

Herkimer's next game is against Finger Lakes Community College in the Region III Semifinal tomorrow. The Lakers lost to the Generals on their home court back in November when they were considered the best team in the region 87-71. Tipoff between the #1 and #4 seed is scheduled for 3 p.m.

Score:

Herkimer Generals 65, Fulton-Montgomery Raiders 50

HERK (27-3, 17-1) Ken Woodard 16, Jamell Johnson 16, Carson Murphy 11, Daniel Owens 10, Julio Galay 5, Jallah Tarver 3, Dantre Langhorne 2, Eli Huggins 2 Totals: 30-10-65

FMCC (15-13, 9-9) Jordan Stewart 9, Kyle Giddings 9, Raheem Small 8, Tyrone Davis 8, Marquis Edwards 6, Jonathan Brioso 4, Shaleek Randolph 3, Barceem Dukes 2, Ayodele Akinmola 1 Totals:22-12-50

3-point goals: Raiders 6 (Stewart 2, Davis 2, Small 1, Edwards 1) Generals 5 (Johnson 2, Murphy 1, Tarver 1, Owens 1)

Halftime:

Herkimer 31-28

Next Game: 2/28 vs. Finger Lakes in Region III Semifinal at 3 p.m.

-Giorgio Varlaro