The Alfred State men's basketball team played tough in their season opener vs. Sage College. The Pioneers fell 84-72 to the defending Skyline Conference champions in the opening round of the Nazareth Tournament.

The Gators, who finished 2014-15 with a 23-5 record and advanced to the NCAA DIII tournament, led throughout the game and led by as many as 16, 38-22, with just over five minutes left in the 1st half. The Pioneers battled back and cut it to 55-54 with 12:12 remaining but Sage went on a 9-0 run and never let Alfred State closer than eight points the rest of the way.

Marcus Patterson led the Gators with 17 points and seven rebounds while Jordan McRay added 12 and Rob Mills chipped in 10. Sage shot 45.1% from the field and had 20 offensive rebounds. The Gators also scored 42 points in the paint.

Marquis Edwards (Queens/In-Tech Academy) led the Pioneers with 22 points. Tyrone Davis (Brooklyn/Benjamin Banneker) added 14 points and D'ondre Davis (Brooklyn/William Grady) chipped in nine. The Pioneers shot 39.1% from the field.

The Pioneers will be back in action on Saturday when they take the court at 1 p.m. to take on the loser of the Nazareth/D'Youville contest.