FREDONIA, NY— In the first return to the hardwood for both teams since the holidays, the Fredonia State Blue Devils defeated the visiting Houghton Highlanders, 87-74.
 
Despite taking a 36-35 advantage into the half, the Highlanders could not stop the Blue Devils down the stretch.  Fredonia outshot Houghton over the final 20 minutes, 55 percent-to-44 percent, capitalized on their opponents' turnovers, and hit 13-of-14 shots from the free-throw line.
 
Over a five-minute stretch early in the second half, the Blue Devils took advantage of a 17-2 run, turning a one-point lead into a comfortable double-digit advantage.  The closest the Highlanders would come over the remainder of the game was when Preston Thomas hit a three-pointer with 6:47 remaining to cut the deficit to eight points. 
 
GAME VITALS
Score: Houghton – 74 | SUNY Fredonia – 87
Records: Houghton: 5-4 (0-0 Empire 8) | SUNY Fredonia: 2-7 (0-2 SUNYAC)
Venue: Dods Hall, SUNY Fredonia | Attendance:  78

NOTABLE STATS
>> Thomas led the Highlanders with 19 points and six rebounds, while Trey Flatt added 15 points.
 
>> Lou Bellamy picked up his fifth double-double of the season, scoring 18 points and grabbing a career-high 16 rebounds.
 
>> Kai Woods led Fredonia with 20 points, knocking down 10-of-12 shots from the field, while posting 11 rebounds.
 
COACH'S CORNER
"Credit to Coach Smiley for having his guys more ready coming out of the break. The Blue Devils played hungry and together.
 
"We missed a lot of opportunities, turned it over too much again, and made a lot of communication mistakes in that second half. [We] need to learn and apply. Turnovers plus defensive errors have cost us three of our four losses and almost some of our wins.
 
"I think Lou [Bellamy] would agree that this was not his best game, yet he had 18 points and 16 rebounds. He owned his mistakes and will correct them. Lou's going to continue to be a force."
 
"I thought Preston [Thomas] had a really solid game. He was patient, crashed the boards, and handled some tougher defensive assignments."
 
UP NEXT
The Highlanders return to the Nielsen Center on Tuesday, January 7^th, when they will kick off Empire 8 conference play against the Nazareth Golden Flyers at 7:30 p.m.