COLLEGE MEN'S BASKETBALL: CORNING GRAD CASEY HELPS GENESEO PAST EC MEN (24 PHOTOS) (January 18, 2026)

Southern Tier Sports Report
ELMIRA, N.Y. - The Elmira College men's basketball team hosted Empire 8 opponent SUNY Geneseo last week in their lone meeting of the season. The Soaring Eagles fell to the Knights, 91–76.

Corning graduate Jackson Casey played 37 minutes in the game, with two points, two assists and two rebounds. He blocked a shot and had a steal. Ithaca grad Justin Yearwood had 13 points and five rebounds in the game. 

PLAY-BY-PLAY
Tyler Cardello opened the game's scoring with a three-pointer, then followed it up with two more on Elmira's next two possessions. Cardello's hot start put the Soaring Eagles up 9–4 early, but a strong response from Geneseo sparked a 16–2 run by the Knights. JJ Babcock's jumper eight minutes into the game cut the deficit to seven, but another Geneseo run extended the lead to 35–19. An Alec Mercer triple helped the Soaring Eagles answer with their own 10–0 run. EC's strong finish to the half sent them into the locker room trailing 40–31.

The Knights opened the second half on a 10–2 run, which was quelled by a pair of baskets from Cardello and a putback layup by AJ Graham. A three-pointer from Graham cut the deficit to 60–50 with 12 minutes remaining. An old-fashioned three-point play by Jude Wilkins made it a single-digit game, and both teams began trading baskets. Emmanuel Karkari-Mensah's driving finish cut the deficit to eight with three minutes left, but strong shooting from Geneseo prevented the Soaring Eagles from closing the gap any further, as the Knights claimed a 91–76 victory.

LEADERS
Tyler Cardello matched his career high with 36 points while shooting 80 percent from three-point range. Kelton Brown added 11 points, eight rebounds, and five assists, while Emmanuel Karkari-Mensah also contributed 11 points.

UP NEXT
The Soaring Eagles will travel to Nazareth University on Friday, January 16, to face the Golden Flyers at 7:30 p.m. in the first of a four-game road stretch. Their next game inside Speidel Gymnasium will be Friday, January 30, against Alfred University.
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PHOTOS BY BRIAN FEES. . . WRITEUP COURTESY OF ELMIRA COLLEGE ATHLETICS. 

PHOTO GALLERY FROM THE GAME:

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