HOUGHTON, N.Y. – Efficient.  That would probably be the best way to describe the St. John Fisher offense on Saturday afternoon.
 
The Cardinals scored on nearly 62 percent of their shots, handing the Houghton Highlanders their third straight Empire 8 loss, 86-101. 
 
Fisher jumped out to an early nine point lead but the Highlanders clawed their way back, trimming the deficit to as little as one when Dylan Lambert (Amherst, NY, Williamsville North) drained a three mid-way through the half.
 
With four minutes remaining in the first half, Phil Pellegrino (Rochester, NY, Alfred University) converted a three-point play to give Houghton the lead, but the Cardinals finished the half with an 18-5 run and went to the locker room up 12.
 
Houghton trimmed the lead to as few as nine on a Jordan Scott layup with just over seven minutes remaining, but that was as close as they'd come, as Fisher pulled away down the stretch.
 
Game Vitals:
      >Score:  St. John Fisher - 101   |   Houghton - 86
      >Records:  St. John Fisher: 8-3 (3-0 Empire 8)   |   Houghton: 5-6 (0-3 Empire 8)
      >Venue: Nielsen Center, Houghton, NY   |    Attendance: 95   
 
Clutch Performances:
The Highlanders:
      >Tyler McQuaid (Lowman, NY, Twin Tiers Christian Academy) went 6-8 from the floor, including a pair of three-pointers, and 4-4 from the line to finish with 18 points.
      >Pellegrino and Jordan Scott (Burlington, ON, Canada, Notre Dame Secondary) chipped in 15 and 13 points, respectively.
 
The Cardinals:
      >Keegan Ryan led all scorers with 24 points and pulled down a team-high eight rebounds
      >Chaz Lott scored 14 in the second half and finished with 22 points and 13 assists
      >Tyler English added 20 points.
       
Stat Analysis:
      >Houghton held the advantage in the turnover game, 12-16, but the Cardinals outshot the Highlanders by nearly 23 percentage points.
      >Most of Fisher's points were scored on high percentage shots in the paint as they outscored Houghton by 28 points between the blocks.
      >While Houghton outrebounded their opponent on the offensive end, 14-6, Fisher dominated the defensive boards, 35-19.
 
Next Time Out:
Houghton hits the road next week for three road contests starting on Tuesday when they travel to Rochester to take on the Golden Flyers of Nazareth College at 6:00 p.m.