MARCY, N.Y. - The SUNY Poly men's basketball team hosted Hamilton College on Wednesday night, looking to improve their record headed into conference play. Unfortunately for the Wildcats, the game did not go their way. Poly held its own in the first half, playing outstanding defense and scoring efficiently. The Wildcats went into the locker room at halftime with a 30-24 lead. The game would end up getting away from Poly in the second half. Hamilton outscored the Wildcats 50-35 in the second, scoring 28 from the free-throw line and shooting 50% from the field. The final score was 74-65 in favor of the Continentals.

For the Wildcats, Quayshaun Mitchell (Harlem, N.Y. / HS of Graphics Communication Arts) had a season high 22 points, he led all scorers. He also had seven rebounds, a steal and a block in the game. Tyler Taverne (Westmoreland, N.Y. / Westmoreland) had a nice game for the Wildcats. He scored 10 points on 4-8 from the field and had seven rebounds, three of which came off the offensive glass. Taverne also had two steals in his 31 minutes of work for the Wildcats. Malik Johnson (Highland Falls, N.Y. / James I. O'Neil HS) was exciting to watch on the defensive end of the floor. He was all over the Continental guards in his 19 minutes of work off the bench. He scored eight points, four of which came off of forced turnovers. Johnson ended up with two steals on the night.

Statistically, the Continentals had the edge in the matchup. They shot better from the field (41%-39%), better from 3-point range (42%-28%) and better from the free-throw line (80%-58%). They also out rebounded the Wildcats 42-29 and had more assists (10-7). The Wildcats had the edge in the steals category as they recorded 10 steals to Hamilton's three.

With the loss, the Wildcats slide to 1-4 on the season headed into conference play. The team's first NEAC matchup is on Saturday against the Wells College Express. Tip-off is scheduled for 1:00 at the Campus Center Gym. Live stats and video will be streamed HERE