HENRIETTA, N.Y. – The University of Rochester will play for third place in the JPMorgan Chase Scholarship Tournament after dropping a 71-66 decision to St. John Fisher College in the semifinals at RIT.

Nate Novosel led the Yellowjackets with 17 points and Marcus Roberson scored 16. Rochester need points from the paint people after perimeter shooters Mike Chmielowiec and Mike Labanowski missed part of the game with injuries. Both men scored 11 points.

Ozell Franklin led Fisher with 22 points. He hit three three-pointers and made nine of 13 free throw attempts. Jordan Gettings had 13 points for the Cardinals and Brandon Witte had 12 points.

For the second game in a row, the Cardinals went on a game-turning run in the second half to pull out a victory. Rochester took a 48-41 lead with 14:43 left in the second half when David Gould hit a short follow in the lane.

Fisher went on a 17-5 run over the next nine minutes to take a 58-53 lead with less than six minutes to play. Franklin and Gettings scored five points apiece.

Another three by Franklin pushed the advantage to 61-55 with 4:22 left before the Yellowjackets made another run. Novosel made four free throws in 40 seconds, pulling Rochester within 61-59 with 3:20 left. Franklin made the front end of two shots for a 62-59 lead at the 3:00 mark.

Sixteen seconds later, Labanowski tried to drive into the lane for a floater. He was injured in a collision. Fisher was whistled for a foul. John Charlesworth replaced Labanowski on the line and sank both shots, make it 62-61.

Witte's two free throws made it 64-61 Fisher with 1:56 left. Roberson spun quickly for a layup at 1:20, getting Rochester within a point again. One free throw from Matt Newman put Fisher up 65-63. Rochester missed two free throws at 0:38 and Fisher booked its spot in the final by sinking six free throws in the last 30 seconds.

The Yellowjackets led throughout the first half, holding off several Fisher rallies. Chmielowiec and Labanowski scored 11 points apiece in the first period. With Rochester ahead, 27-23, after Roberson's layup, Chmielowiec had to leave the game when a nagging foot injury flared up. Fisher got within two (27-25). Novosel made a layup and Max Kaplan sank one free throw. The Cardinals eventually got it down to 32-31 before Charlesworth drained a three-pointer. Conor Henderson hit a three for Fisher but Labanowski made his third trey of the game 21 seconds before halftime for a 38-34 lead at the break.

Rochester will play SUNY Geneseo at 3 pm Saturday at RIT in the third place game. The same two teams met for the championship two years ago at Roberts Wesleyan with Rochester winning. The Chase title game will match seventh-seeded Nazareth against St. John Fisher.