HOUGHTON, N.Y.— The fans in attendance at the Men's Basketball game on Friday evening were in for  an exciting contest against Ithaca College. While staying on the heels of the Bombers in the earlier portion of the first period, the Highlanders soon found themselves in a 21-point deficit with one minute left in the half. Brandon Camacho's (Dundee, NY, Dundee High School) 3-point buzzer beater made for a thrilling finish to the game, however, Houghton just fell short 87-83.

With a 14-12 Highlander lead at the beginning of the first half, the Bombers not only tied the game but continued to push forward. Tyler McQuaid (Lowman, NY, Twin Tiers Christian Academy) put Ithaca's momentum to a short halt by scoring 5 points in under a minute. This did not stall the Bombers for long, as they managed to score 16 points consecutively.

Finding themselves down 44-23 with one minute left in the first period, Houghton was able to execute a set of free throws to reduce themselves to a 19 point deficit going into the second half.

After taking turns scoring at the start of the second period, the Highlanders were able to inch forward and minimize the gap. Phil Pellegrino's (Rochester, NY, Brighton) successes at the free throw line as well as Camacho's and McQuaid's victories at the 3-point arc helped minimize the gap to 8 points.

After a 15-6 Ithaca run lead, Houghton was down 64-47 with just over 9 minutes left in the game.

For every 2 points scored by the Bombers, the Highlanders scored 3. With only 1:33 left in the game, Pellegrino's 3-point shot sparked a comeback. Camacho took over by scoring 9 points nearly consecutively, the last of which was a successful 3-point buzzer beater. Regardless of Camacho's efforts, Houghton barely fell short 87-83.

Camacho led the Highlanders offensively by a large margin, scoring an impressive 31 points while going 5-9 at the 3-point arc and 4-5 at the free throw line. McQuaid followed with 17 points while going 3-4 at the 3-point arc. Pellegrino finished the game with 16 points.

The Highlanders will play again at home tomorrow (2/7) against the Saxons of Alfred University at 4:00 p.m.