Men's Basketball defeats Fitchburg State, 75-73, in season opener

ROCHESTER, N.Y. – RIT senior guard Chase Dickens scored a team-high 20 points to propel the Men's Basketball team past Fitchburg State, 75-73, in their season opener Friday.
 
HOW IT HAPPENED

• Dickens scored 15 points in the first half for the Tigers, with nine points coming from beyond the arc.
• Senior guard Matt Caggiano added 10 points in the half as RIT shot 46.9 percent from the field over the first 20 minutes.
• After heading into the locker room leading 49-32, the visiting Falcons chipped away at RIT's lead throughout the second half. 
• Fitchburg used an 8-2 run in the second half to make it a four point Tigers lead with 9:06 remaining. The run was capped by one of Kamau Franks' five three-pointers of the game.
• Later in the second half, Fitchburg's Nathaniel Semedo tied the game at 67 after draining a three with 4:30 left on the clock.
• With 14 seconds left, Caggiano made a pair of free throws to give the Tigers a 75-72 lead.
• The Falcons managed to get to the free-throw line with 2 seconds on the clock, but were unable convert the intentional miss on the second free-throw for a change to potentially even the score.

 
GAME NOTES

• Dickens earned a double-double by adding 11 rebounds (7 defensive, 4 offensive) to his 20 points.
• Fifth year forward Kenny Wilburn chipped in 14 points for RIT, making 6 of 10 from the field.
• Fitchburg's Kamau Franks led all scorers with 21 points while also grabbing 11 rebounds. 
• As a team, RIT shot 39.0 percent from the field as well as making 22 of 27 shots from the free-throw line.

 
WHAT'S NEXT
The Tigers face Utica tomorrow (Nov. 9) afternoon at 3:30 p.m. in the championship game of the Harold J. Brodie Classic.