The Men's Basketball team traveled to Herkimer College on Wednesday evening. The Raiders took on the #11 nationally ranked Generals who entered the contest with an 8-1 conference record.
FMCC took it to the Generals right from the tip to go up 10-5. At the 10-minute mark, Herkimer made back-to-back buckets to gain a 19-18 advantage over FM. The Raiders closed out the half on an 11-2 run and led 33-29 at the half.
It was all Raiders to open the second half. De'Vante Mateo led FM to a 51-39 lead with 14 minutes remaining. Nahjhime Kirton was big on the boards and efficient at the free throw line to extend the lead 57-46 with 10 minutes left.
The Generals would not go away as they reeled off 8 straight points and trailed by just two points with a minute to go. Head Coach Ej Gallup settled his team with a timeout, and they were able to grind out the 76-70 upset victory.
"I have a lot of respect for Matt and the program he has built at Herkimer. The success they have had there speaks for itself. Anytime you can go to their place and leave with a win is a great night. Our team is starting to see the potential we have, and it is nice to see that translating into wins and the confidence growing in my guys. We just want to keep that going one game at a time and we are excited for our home game this Saturday," stated Ej Gallup.
Kirton came up with a big night for FM. He finished with 30 points and 14 rebounds. Mateo finished with 17 points and Kennyh Hardeman finished with 12 points and 11 rebounds. Jelani Moreno tallied 10 assists to go with 8 points.
The Raiders will host their first home game in over a month on Saturday, January 21st. They take on Bryant and Stratton (Rochester) at 3:00 p.m.
