UPSET! Men's basketball upsets No. 8 Corning

CONTACT: Adam Sopris, a.sopris@hvcc.edu, 518-629-7898 or 518-416-2137
FOR RELEASE: Immediate, Saturday, December 10, 2022

The Hudson Valley Community College men's basketball earned its second win over a NJCAA top-10 program as the Vikings upset No. 8 Corning 83-71 at the McDonough Sports Complex on Saturday afternoon.

The two programs battled back and forth with the Vikings entering the halftime break with a narrow five-point advantage. Jourdan Belcher lead the way for the Vikings balanced offense in the first half with eight points and five rebounds. Trevor Green, Demani Benjamin and Kobi Wallace all had six, first-half points as the Vikings shot 17-of-41 (42%) from the floor. Belcher finished the game with a game-high 22 points and added eight rebounds (seven offensive).

In the second half, the Vikings pulled away to lead by as many as 18 points with 13:55 remaining in the game. The Vikings dominated with 42 points in the paint, compared to 32 points from Corning, but Corning pulled within six points of the Vikings thanks to Corning's ability to score off Hudson Valley turnovers. Corning scored 30 points off turnovers, compared to Hudson Valley's 22.

Hudson Valley ultimately held on for the 12-point victory for their second win over top-10 ranked opponents. Hudson Valley defeated Mohawk Valley earlier in the season when they were ranked among the nation's best.

All five starters for the Vikings finished with 10 points or more. Joining Belcher as top scorers in the game were Green, who posted 14 points and 11 rebounds and added three assists, three steals and four blocks. Benjamin finished with 10 points, Wallace tallied 12 points and Eriks Veidemanis finished with 12 points and six rebounds.

The Vikings are back in action tomorrow, Sunday, December 11 as they welcome No. 5 ranked Genesee to the McDonough Sports Complex. The game is scheduled to tip at 12 p.m.