The Tompkins Cortland Community College men's basketball season came to an end Saturday in the semifinal round of the NJCAA Region 3 tournament as the Panthers came up short in their bid to upset top-seeded Herkimer College on the Generals' home court. After leading much of the back-and-forth game, the Panthers just couldn't finish the game out, falling to Herkimer by a final score of 83-75. Tompkins Cortland, the tournament's #4 seed, ends the season with a record of 17-9. Herkimer advances to Sunday's championship game with a record of 26-2.
Things started hot for the Panthers, with Khai Pugh (Syracuse/Nottingham H.S.), Damari Johnson (Binghamton/Johnson City H.S.) and Bryan Viscaino (Manhattan/Monsignor Scanlon H.S.) each connecting on a 3-pointer in the first two minutes of action. Herkimer responded to the fast start and came back to take a 10-9 lead, the first of four lead changes in the first half. Neither team was able to run away from the other, with the Panthers holding the biggest lead of the half at 29-20. The first twenty minutes ended with Tompkins Cortland ahead 37-34.
Johnson opened the second half with another 3-pointer, kicking off a sometimes-frenetic second half that featured five ties and nine lead changes in the first 12 minutes. As the game entered its final ten minutes, a run of lead changes on four consecutive possessions put Herkimer ahead 61-60. The spread grew to 65-60 with 7:00 left, but the Panthers kept within striking distance. The Herkimer lead peaked at 78-67 with 2:20 left, but the Panthers had a last push to try to knock off the Generals.
Kobe Nwosu (Spring Valley/North Rockland H.S.) found Pugh for a layup, and after a defensive rebound by Viscaino, Johnson drained his seventh 3-pointer of the day, making the score 78-72 with 1:11 left. A turnover by Herkimer on the inbound pass gave the Panthers had a chance to pull even closer, but the 3-pointer rimmed out and was rebounded by Herkimer. After a foul, Herkimer made 1-of-2 free throws, and the Generals were able to add another bucket to stretch lead back to nine at 81-72, essentially icing the game with under a minute to play.
Johnson's seven 3-pointers set a new program playoff record and were part of his 27 points and 8 rebounds. Pugh had another double-double, his 17th of the season, with 15 points and 13 rebounds. Viscaino added 12 points and Javonte Long (Harlem/Clayton H.S.) had a team-best 7 assists.