FREDONIA, N.Y. -- The Fredonia men's basketball team pulled within one point in the closing minutes, but could not get over the hump, falling to Geneseo 87-80 on Friday. The loss prevented the Devils from claiming the season sweep of the Knights -- Fredonia having won 89-86 back on Jan. 5th.

With 8:15 remaining and Geneseo up 73-60, the Devils ran off 12-straight points to close the gap to one. Ian Helps (Bronx, N.Y.) scored seven of his 14 points during that span. Geneseo would gradually work the lead back up to nine points, 83-74, over the next couple minutes to put the game on ice.

The game featured a long-ball battle, led by Fredonia's Richard De La Cruz (Washington Heights, N.Y. / Norman Thomas), who finished with a career-high 24 points, and Geneseo's Justin Ringen. De La Cruz was a perfect six for six from beyond the arc, while Ringen, who finished with a game-high 28 points, went a healthy seven for 11.

As a team, Fredonia hit on 10 of 14 (71 percent) of its long balls, while the Knights shot a respectable 11 of 25 (44 percent).

Fredonia was hampered early on by foul trouble. Helps, the team's leading scorer, picked up three quick fouls in the first two-and-a-half minutes and would not score in the first half. De La Cruz would pick up much of the scoring slack, with 14 points by the break, but Geneseo would build a 48-38 lead.

Other top performers for the Devils included Dante Williams (Buffalo, N.Y. / Hutch Tech) and Kareem Brown (Brooklyn, N.Y. / Brooklyn H.S. for Law & Tech) who both scored 11. Helps was the top rebounder with seven boards.

Fredonia shot a season-best 57 percent from the floor, compared to Geneseo's 45 percent. The Knights held an advantage at the line, shooting 22 of 27 (82 percent) while Fredonia hit on 16 of 28 (57 percent). Geneseo held a slim 29-28 edge under the boards.

In addition to Ringen's 28, Geneseo (9-3, 3-2) was aided by John Decker's 19 points and 14 from Kevin Crockett. Ringen topped the Knights with five rebounds, three assists and three steals.

Fredonia falls to 3-9 overall and 2-4 in SUNYAC play. They take on Brockport Saturday. Tipoff is slated for 4 p.m. in Steele Hall.


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