JOHNSTOWN – The #7 nationally-ranked SUNY Delhi Broncos came to the FM campus on Saturday afternoon and had to use all of their resources to defeat the hard-working Raiders.

FM jumped out to a 6-2 lead and led or tied the game for the first 17-plus minutes. FM's biggest lead was eight points (17-9). Delhi moved ahead in the second half, but the Raiders fought back and nearly tied the game again. With just over two minutes to play, the visitors were ahead by merely a point, at 68-67, but some good last-minute shooting gave the win to the highly-favored Broncs.

Photo:  Kenny Barr's nice drive puts FM up 8-5

The Delhi Five were impressive, but the Raiders were even more so for nearly all of the first half. The FM loyal were thinking that their Raiders just might slay the giant.

Kadeem Stanislas and Marquis Edwards opened the scoring with nice drives to the hoop, and FM led 4-0. Soon Kenny Barr took a pass from Carlos Rivera and made a sweet drive through the lane. 10-7, FM.

Barr sank a three from the left side. Stanislas put back a shot by Rivera. Dondre Simmons drove in deftly, and FM led 17-9. Delhi shaved three points off that lead, but Simmons drained a spinning jumper to make it 19-12.

Photo:  Dondre Simmons gets through some tough defense for two

There's a reason that the Broncos are ranked #1 in the region: They are a very good team. Delhi narrowed the gap. Simmons drove again, and FM still led, 21-18. The Broncos connected on a three-pointer and finally tied the game. The score was 21-21 after 11 minutes of play.

Daren Mercedes gave FM another lead. Mercedes' trey from the left side made it 26-23. Stanislas drove for two, but Delhi hit a three. Rivera tipped in a two, but Delhi drained another three. Rivera answered with a three, and FM led 33-29.

The visitors then scored six unanswered points, and took their first lead, at 35-33, with 2:24 on the clock. Despite some good defensive rebounding by FM and a Stanislas score in the final seconds, Delhi had a 42-38 lead at the break.

The second half saw the Broncos expand their lead during the first four minutes despite some good play by the Raiders. Edwards inbounded the ball from under his own basket, slipping a great pass to Stanislas. Stanislas scored, but Delhi led 51-44.

Photo:  Carlos Rivera scores from outside the arc

Delhi expanded their lead to 11, at 60-49, but the Raiders fought back. Simmons hit a three. Tyrone Davis drove for two. 62-54 Delhi. A spinning jumper by Barr gave FM 56 points, closing the gap to six.

The Raiders kept closing in. A Simmons' putback, a Barr three, and a Barr 12' jumper made the score 68-67 in Delhi's favor. The Broncos called a time out with exactly 2:00 left to play. The fans were on their feet cheering.

Stanislas scored two more points from the line, but Delhi did most of the scoring in those final two minutes. The Raiders had almost lassoed the horses from the western Catskills, but the Broncos got away and won the game 77-69.

FM's offense had once again been led by Stanislas. He scored 25 points, several of which came from difficult drives through traffic. (See photo below.)

Delhi's record is now 19-4.  The Raiders are 7-12.

FM travels to Herkimer on Wednesday, February 5, for a 7:00 p.m. contest. Their next home game will be Sunday, February 9 for a 3:00 p.m. matchup with Mohawk Valley.

                           C.J. Bonny, website writer

Delhi:  Carter 4, Berroa 13, Infante 7, Nicholson 6, M. Banton 12, Mehmetaj 6, Zarba 4, J. Banton 3, Scott 13, Toure 9; Total 77

FM:  Barr 14, Mercedes 3, Simmons 13, Rivera 5, Edwards 2, Stanislas 25, T. Davis 4, Baum 3, Total 69

Photo:  Kadeem Stanislas scores with an amazing drive early in the second half

 

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