HOW IT HAPPENED:
SUNY Poly wasted no time establishing momentum. Just 16 seconds into the game, Kamryn Comstock powered in a layup off a feed from Marqiis Samuels to put the Wildcats on the board. After Worcester State answered with a jumper, Anthony Rose connected from deep at 18:01 to give Poly a 5–2 lead.
Comstock stayed aggressive, converting again inside at 17:18, and Samuels added a layup to push the Wildcats ahead 9–6. Moments later, Rose sliced through the defense for a finish at the rim, stretching the lead to 11–6.
Worcester State briefly surged, tying the game at 11–11 after consecutive buckets from Ayme Daguilh and Joe Okla, but SUNY Poly's bench responded with authority. Alec Bartone scored inside at 12:26, and Oumaru Hydara finished a fastbreak layup off a steal and assist from Rose to make it 15–12.
Rose continued to find his rhythm, drilling a jumper at 11:10, but Worcester kept hanging around behind Okla's interior scoring. Bartone added two free throws at the 11-minute mark, and Hydara attacked again with a strong inside finish at 10:30 to make it 21–16.
SUNY Poly's defense stiffened midway through the half, forcing a string of turnovers and tough shots. Offensively, the Wildcats began to pull away. Steven Dowdall buried a three at 8:23, extending the lead to 24–18, and after a Worcester bucket, Rose hit another momentum-swinging three at 5:10 to give Poly its first double-digit lead at 29–19.
Rose and Bartone continued to pace the offense late in the half. Rose nailed a jumper at 4:27, and Bartone finished a feed from Rose at 3:06 to put SUNY Poly up 34–23. Hydara added another layup at 1:06 before Worcester closed the half with a late bucket, sending the Wildcats into the break ahead 36–29.
The Wildcats opened the second half much like they ended the first: attacking inside and dictating tempo. Comstock scored on back-to-back possessions, and Samuels added a layup to push the advantage to 40–33. Moments later, Comstock again finished through contact, converting a three-point play to make it 43–33.
Rose kept the offense humming with a jumper at 16:10 and added a free throw seconds later to push the lead to 48–36. Poly's defensive energy fueled transition chances, and Rose cashed in with another layup at 15:29 to balloon the margin to 50–36.
Worcester State fought to stay in striking distance, but the Wildcats were unrelenting. Hydara buried a three at 13:32 to re-extend the lead to double digits after a brief Lancers push, and SUNY Poly kept applying pressure. Bonin turned a steal into a fastbreak layup at 10:53, then hit a free throw to make it 56–46.
Rose added two free throws at 8:57 to push the lead back to nine, and Samuels scored inside moments later to make it 60–49. The Wildcats were firmly in command, and they buried Worcester with a decisive 15–1 run over the next four minutes.
Scanlon drilled a three at 7:43, Bonin hit four straight free throws to extend the lead to 67–50, and Rose scored again inside at 6:13 to make it 69–50. SUNY Poly continued to punish Worcester in the paint, with Comstock finishing at 4:04 and Bartone scoring inside at 1:31 as the Wildcats completely controlled the final minutes.
With the game in hand, SUNY Poly's reserves closed it out in style. Brady Eitleman knocked down a jumper with 54 seconds left for the team's final points of the afternoon, sealing a dominant 78–59 win.
"3rd game in five days, our guys showed up with 40 minutes of relentless energy and competitiveness today," said head coach Rob Schoener. "Contributions from everyone, a total team win!"
