Purchase Slips Past Fitchburg State, 75-65

Sheldon nets a game-high 17 in Falcons second round loss

WILMANTIC, Conn. (November 21, 2009) - Freshman Blake Sheldon (Westminster, Mass./Oakmont) netted a game-high 17 points but the Fitchburg State men's basketball team suffered its third loss of the season, falling to Purchase College, 75-65 in the consolation round of the Eastern Tip-Off Tournament.

BLAKE SHELDON

Purchase received a pair of 15 point efforts from Corey Orgias (Highland Mills, N.Y./Monroe-Woodbury) and Michael McNair (Valley Cottage, N.Y./Nyack). The duo shot 50% from the field (12-of-24) and 5-of-9 from the free throw stripe while collecting 12 rebounds. Junior Charles Thompson (Upper Marlboro, Md./Charles Herbert Flowers) was also solid with 13 points for the Panthers, while Marvin Billups (Chester, N.Y./Monroe-Woodbury) added 12.

Fitchburg State's Sheldon led all scorers with a game-high 17 points and three rebounds, while junior Robert Hopkins (East Hartford, Conn./RHAM) added eight points off the bench. Senior Jonathan Evans (Shrewsbury, Mass./Shrewsbury) brought in a team-high seven rebounds to add to the mix, while classmate Colin London (Worcester, Mass./Doherty) chipped in with six points and five boards.

In the first half, Fitchburg State grabbed a four point lead at the break (43-39) as Sheldon collected 14 of his 17 points in the frame. Trailing by four with 6:46 left in the half, the Falcons strung together a 14-6 run over four minutes to gain a four point advantage. Fitchburg State used a series of three pointers in the rally as Sheldon, Hopkins, freshman Rolfi Canela (Perth Amboy, N.J./Cardinal McCarrick) and Nicholas Viera (Edgartown, Mass./Martha's Vineyard) each connected from beyond the arc.

In the second half, Purchase's offense began to catch fire, while its defense limited Fitchburg State to only 22 points in the period. With the score tied at 47-47, the Panthers ran off a 21-9 stretch to take a commanding ten point lead at the 3:43 mark. Fitchburg State came within seven as Sheldon drained a three with 3:26 remaining, but McNair and the Panthers continued to match the Falcons buckets to secure their first victory of the season.

Fitchburg State (0-3, 0-0 MASCAC) will be in action again on Tuesday as it travels to UMass Boston at 7:30 p.m. Purchase (1-2, 0-1 SKYLINE) will hosts Mount Saint Mary's on Tuesday at 7 p.m.

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Purchase 75, Fitchburg State 65