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Hayden Ward (Sr., Montauk, N.Y.) registered his second double-double in as many days with a career-high 29 points and 11 rebounds, powering the Oswego State men's basketball team (4-1, 1-1 SUNYAC) to a 69-54 victory over Potsdam (1-4, 0-2 SUNYAC) on Saturday. Ward eclipsed the 1,000-point mark early in the second half, becoming the 16th in men's basketball history to do so.
Ward started the game off with a three-pointer and scored eight early points to give the Lakers an early 19-11 lead. The Lakers pushed the lead to as much as 12 points, but the Bears hung tight, whittling the lead down three points by halftime with two free throws by Rob Duquette.
Potsdam's leading scorer, Mark Lake, Jr., knotted the score up at 41 apiece with a layup. However, the Lakers countered with a 12-0 run which put them ahead for good. Four different Lakers scored during the stretch, including Ward who went 11-for-12 from the foul line in the contest.
After attempting 28 shots in the first half, the Bears were held to 42 percent shooting and just 19 shots in the second stanza. The Bears got the lead back down to six, but that's as close as they would get.
The Lakers worked at the defensive end and consistently hit free throws, making 18 of their 21 second half free throws to ice the game.
Lake, Jr. led the Bears with 12 points. Sean Michele (Sr., East Rochester, N.Y.) and Chris Gilkes (Sr., Syracuse, N.Y.) tacked on 16 and 11 points, respectively for Oswego State.
The Lakers travel to Brockport 8 p.m., Tuesday, Dec. 4, to match up with the Golden Eagles.
