The Columbia-Greene Community College men's basketball team dropped a hard fought game against Division II foe SUNY Orange, 64-49.  The final margin was not indicative of how close the game really was. 

The first half was a back and forth battle, with the biggest lead coming in the first two minutes of the game when SUNY Orange quickly jumped ahead 6-0.  The Twins took a 9-8 lead five minutes later.  No lead was greater than three points for the remainder of the half, with the two teams going back and forth jockeying for control of the game.  The Colts entered halftime with a 28-25 advantage.  Coach Rickard was pleased with his team's first half defense. "I was very happy with how hard we worked defensively.  Orange is a very talented team with a hand full of players that can really score the ball.  Our team defense was very good."  The Twins held Orange's leading scorer, Parrish Canty, to only four first half points and ten on the night, which is six below his average. "Jon Halligan did a great job taking Parrish out of it early, and that allowed us to focus in on their shooters."

For the Twins, Jon Halligan was taking on the scoring load in the first half with11 points.  Dienet Saint Jean, Khalil Paul, and Malcolm Shivers cleaned up on the boards grabbing 18 rebounds between the three of them.

The second half was more of the same.  Back and forth the game went, with both teams matching each other on the offensive.  Then, at the ten minute mark, the Twins offense stalled.  The Twins would only score eight more points the rest of the way.  SUNY Orange was able to pull away late for the final margin of victory.  "I was very happy with how we ran our offense.  We got open shots, we just couldn't put the ball in the basket," said Rickard. "But overall all I was very happy with our effort and how we played as a team.  Sometimes the breaks don't go your way, but if we continue to play as hard as we have, we will give ourselves the best chance to succeed. That is all you can ask of your players."

The leading scorer for the Twins was Jon Halligan with 17 points.  He was followed by Saint Jean who finished with a double-double, 10 points and 10 rebounds.

The Twins have completed their first semester schedule with a 7-4 record overall and a record of 5-2 in Region III.  They return to action on January 5 against Onondaga Community College.