PITTSFORD, NY – Host St. John Fisher University staked a claim to the tournament title at the 2023 Mark's Pizzeria Crosstown Shootout after defeating the University of Rochester men's basketball team 81-73 on Saturday night at Manning & Napier Gymnasium.
 
The matchup featured the two teams posted victories in Thursday's opening round of games, with Rochester topping Nazareth University and St. John Fisher earning a victory over RIT in the classic style four-team event between schools in the Rochester area.
 
Rochester's loss drops the Yellowjackets to 2-2 on the season, while St. John Fisher moves its record to 3-2 so far in 2023.
 
UR was led by four players who finished with 10 or more points. Logan Jagodzinski paced Rochester with 16 points and nine rebounds, also blocking a pair of shots. Mitchell Kershner added 13 points and five rebounds, sinking a team-high three 3-pointers.
 
C.J. Amsellem chipped in 12 points, while Matt Wiele scored 10 points and added eight rebounds.
 
St. John Fisher's Connor Recore led all players in the game with 21 points and 13 rebounds while Daniel Cook also recorded a double-double with 17 points and 11 boards. Brendan McRoy chipped in 14 points and 6 assists while Jack Foley finished with 10 points for the Cardinals.
 
Both Jagodzinski and Wiele represented Rochester on the All-Tournament team, with St. John Fisher's Cook being named MVP. Recore, RIT's Kenny Wilburn and Nazareth's Logan Blankenberg also were All-Tournament selections.
 
Rochester's biggest lead of the contest was three, up 9-6 after a pair of Wiele free throws six minutes into the game.
 
After St. John Fisher edged in front by four following a Foley free throw, both teams started sinking shots from long range. Corvin Oprea made a triple to make it a one-point lead. Foley answered with a Cardinal 3-pointer.
 
Jagodzinski added a shot from distance before Recore went inside for a layup. Kershner finished off the hot shooting stretch for both sides with a 3-pointer, making the score 28-all with under four minutes to play in the half.
 
At intermission, St. John Fisher held a four-point lead, up 37-33.
 
Early in the second half, Rochester's Jagodzinski slammed one home to cut the Cardinals lead to one, down 40-39 but that was as close as UR would get as St. John Fisher led the entire half to claim the victory.
 
The key stretch was a 9-0 run following the Jagodzinski dunk to extend the lead to double-digits for Fisher. Two slams by the Cardinals electrified the home crowd, as McRoy and Cook rattled in jams.
 
Rochester fought to get back within six following back-to-back buckets from Jagodzinski, but McRoy scored the next seven points of the game to build Fisher's lead back to 13, the biggest of the game.
 
In the late stages, the Yellowjackets pressure forced multiple St. John Fisher turnovers, leading to a 7-0 run which cut the lead back to six, but the Cardinals responded right away, boosting the lead back to double-digits.
 
A Kershner 3-pointer, Tomiwa Adetsoye free throw and Malachi Moore jumper cut the lead back down to six with under two minutes to play, but St. John Fisher fended off the rally, holding on for the eight-point win.
 
Overall in the contest, UR shot 36% from the field, making 21-of-59 shots, and was 27% from distance (8-30). Fisher ended with a 48% shooting total (29-61) and was 6-for-14 (43%) from distance. The teams paired for 42 total fouls and 65 total free throws in the hotly-contested matchup.
 
Rochester's next game is back at home on Tuesday evening with Hobart College coming to the Palestra for an 8 pm tip-off.