On Sunday, Nov. 18, the men's basketball team won the New York University Tip-Off Tournament against NYU, 60-57, at the Jerome S. Coles Sports Center in Manhattan.
Junior Scott Morton hit a 30-foot three-pointer at the final buzzer to give the Knights a hard-fought victory. Morton, who was named the tournament's most valuable player, scored a game-high 28 points on 11-19 shooting. He was responsible for the Knight's final five points as they came back in the last 1:35 to win the game.
After NYU took at 57-55 lead, the Violets missed a shot and then turned the ball over on the ensuing possession. Morton dished it inside to senior Tarik Kitson, who hit a jumper in the lane to tie the game with 30 seconds left.
Junior Jeff Howe was a key part of the Knights' victory, netting 10 points in the game on his way to earning a spot on the All-Tournament Team. Senior Charlie Parker led the Violets with 22 points in a valiant effort. The game featured four ties and six lead changes in the second half alone.
In the first-round game the day before, Geneseo easily discarded Rensselear Polytechnic Institute 69-56 to earn the right to face NYU. RPI took third place in the tournament with a 78-76 overtime victory against Framingham State College.
On Tuesday, Nov. 27, the Knights squared off against the Cardinals of St. John Fisher at home. Men's coach Steve Minton commented on Fisher's style of play, saying, "They have a much more up-tempo style of play and it will be interesting to see how our two styles contrast." Geneseo managed to escape with a 68-64 victory after leading by 10 points at halftime. Senior Joe Kling scored a team-high 18 points and Howe added 17 as the Knights improved to 3-0 on the season. On Friday, Nov. 30, Geneseo hosts SUNY Oneonta to kick off conference play at 8 p.m.
The Geneseo women's basketball team traveled to Arlington, Va., on Friday, Nov. 16, to play in the 20th Annual Marymount University Tip-Off Classic. The women's team, under first-year coach Scott Hemer, did not fare as well as the men's squad, dropping all three of their games and losing by an average of 13 points per game over the three-day tournament. The women lost to Gwynedd-Mercy College in the first game, 63-57, followed by a 64-44 loss to Gettysburg College the next day.
On Thursday, Nov. 18, the last day of the tournament, Geneseo faced off against the Salisbury University Sea Gulls. Geneseo trailed by six at the half, 26-20, but a 14-0 run over six minutes by the Sea Gulls stretched a five-point advantage to a 19-point lead at 54-35 in the second half. After that the Sea Gulls pulled away, with a final score of 70-46.
When asked about his team's performance in the tournament, Hemer was optimistic.
"We played against some of the best teams in the country," he said. "This is a new system and the girls are still learning it and those teams have been using the same system for years."
Hemer was, however, pleased with the play of senior guard Lydia Reed, calling her a "steadying force for us on the floor."
On Wednesday, Nov. 27, the women's squad also played host to St. John Fisher. Geneseo held an early lead, but fell behind to lose 58-48. The Cardinals went on a 15-4 run over a six-minute span in the second half to pull away from the Knights.
Transfer junior Tracy Wangelin led Geneseo with 16 points and Hemer pointed out her play as a key to future success.
"If we can continue to get that type of production from her while getting some of our senior scorers on track, we should be in good shape as the season progresses," he said.
Senior Annie Verdino netted seven points and 10 rebounds for the Knights as they fell to 0-4 on the season. Geneseo will host Oneonta in their SUNYAC opener on Friday at 6 p.m.