UNIONTOWN, Pa. (March 12, 2020) – The third-seed SUNY Delhi men's basketball team are through to the Final Four of the USCAA Division I National Tournament by beating six-seed Holy Family, 70-56, in the quarterfinals Thursday afternoon. The Broncos advance to Friday's semifinals game at 4:00 p.m. to face the winner of the quarterfinals game between two-seed St. Thomas (Tex.) and seven-seed The Apprentice School, set for Thursday at 4:00 p.m. The USCAA National Tournament is hosted by Penn State Fayette.

Concerns of a low-scoring game were raised when the scoreboard showed just a 5-1 Broncos lead at the first media timeout five minutes in. But part of that was due to SUNY Delhi's defense, which forced the Lakers into six turnovers through the seven minutes while its offense looked to pick up steam. The first 3-pointer did not occur until eight minutes remaining in the half, as Glenn Butler provided the honor with his first of three long balls on the day to give Delhi the lead back at 13-12. Butler returned to score the next five points for the Broncos, the first two coming on free throws, then his second 3-pointer to help Delhi take hold of the contest with an 18-14 lead with under seven minutes to go in the half. The Broncos kept rolling by doubling their point total over the remaining seven minutes for a 36-24 lead at halftime. They earned their first double-digit lead thanks to back-to-back threes from Butler and Carlos Ithier giving Delhi a 34-24 lead with 2:05 to go before the half. A turnaround jump shot by Jordan Fragale ended the first-half scoring.

Delhi maintained its grip on the game in the second half, holding a double-digit lead for most of the period and only allowing the Lakers to get no closer than eight points of its lead. The Broncos fully utilized their rebounding abilities to get the win, finishing with a 50-36 lead on the boards. They led, 18-7, in offensive rebounds, which resulted in 16 second-chance points for the green and gold. The men even produced in tight situations, including running a successful inbounds play late in the game with seven seconds showing on the shot clock, resulting in a Butler basket for the last of his game-high 24 points on the afternoon. He finished 8-of-14 from the field and 3-of-5 from 3-point range.

"We started out a little slow on the offensive end, but defensively we did a great job of making them work for everything," replied head coach Zack Thomsen. We showed a lot of toughness throughout the game!"

Payton Dean garnered his tenth double-double of the season with 18 points and ten rebounds, while Jared Beach recorded seven points and a game-best 11 boards. Fragale charted 11 points to go with eight assists and five rebounds, while Justin Daoud netted seven points with five boards. Delhi finished at 39.3 percent shooting (24-for-61) and 4-of-11 on threes, as Holy Family posted up at 30.9 percent (17-of-55) and 5-of-21, respectively. The Broncos battled through just an 18-of-31 showing from the free throw line, as the Lakers connected on 17-of-19.

The Broncos' win Thursday extended their win streak to 11 games for a 21-7 record on the season, marking their highest season win total under the fifth-year Coach Thomsen. This also marks the program's first USCAA Tournament win in their first USCAA Small College Championships appearance.

STATEMENT FROM THE USCAA ON COVID-19:

The USCAA is remaining vigilant in its review of COVID-19 and the CDC recommendations.  Yesterday, we concluded the Division II USCAA Basketball National Championships and opened ceremonies for the Division I Championship.  Through memo and in the coaches meeting, we asked coaches to remain attentive to their players, promoting good hygiene, and recommending washing hands regularly.  Penn State Fayette (host site), took the lead on installing additional hand sanitizer stations throughout the tournament and maintenance staff will be cleaning locker rooms regularly.  We do intend to finish the 2020 USCAA Basketball National Championships.

We have spoken to the USCAA Executive Council, and we aim on having a USCAA Board of Directors meeting within the week to address the following issues:

Continuation of spring sports and the 2020 USCAA Small College World Series

Impacts on scheduling, rankings processes, and selections should we move forward with play

Eligibility for student-athletes affected by cancelled seasons

As of now, the Small College World Series and USCAA National Convention are on as scheduled.  As always, the USCAA respects the autonomy of the member institution to make decisions that are in its best interest.  The USCAA will be recommending that students whose seasons are canceled receive hardship waivers, under specific provisions.

We will have more for you in the coming week and as we know more about the situation.