NEW PALTZ, N.Y. | The Farmingdale State men's basketball team extended its winning streak to five games on Wednesday night, earning an 86-76 non-conference road victory at SUNY New Paltz. Juniors Liam Buckley (Manhasset, N.Y.) and Kentrell Evans (Brooklyn, N.Y.) led the Rams with double-doubles, combining for 37 points and 22 rebounds.

Farmingdale State (6-1) started quick as junior guard Derek Reed (Shinnecock, N.Y.) opened the game with a steal and a fastbreak layup for the games first basket. Evans followed with a layup, and senior guard Sean Conroy (Staten Island, N.Y.) buried a jumper to make it 6-0. Reed added another layup as the Rams opened the game on an 8-0 run.

Later in the first half, the Hawks took a 29-28 lead with just over two minutes on the clock, but the Rams responded with a Michael Notias (Manhasset, N.Y.) layup to regain the lead. After New Paltz tallied a layup on the next possession, freshman guard Conor Griffin (Whitestone, N.Y.) knocked down a 3 off a Notias assist. Following a steal by sophomore guard Jordan Tucker (Elmont, N.Y.), Griffin nailed a fastbreak 3 to give FSC a 36-31 halftime lead.

The Rams started the second half on a 7-0 run to push their advantage to 43-31. Reed scored two early layups, and Conroy added a 3 to go up by 12. Buckley then took over, scoring inside on consecutive possessions and hitting a fastbreak 3-pointer to go ahead, 50-33.

Still leading by 17, 57-40, Buckley converted a three-point play before a Conroy layup gave the Rams a 22-point lead, their largest of the game, just six minutes into the second half.

The Rams maintained at least a 10-point lead for the remainder of the contest. New Paltz cut the deficit to 80-70 with 3:04 remaining on a 3-pointer by Mo Sylla, but Farmingdale State made all six of their free throws down the stretch as they went on for the 86-76 victory.

Buckley led FSC with 21 points on 7-of-10 shooting and added 11 rebounds. Evans posted 16 points and 11 rebounds on 6-of-9 shooting. Notias totaled 13 points, eight rebounds, five assists and a steal, while Reed scored 10 points with two steals. Conroy added nine points, six rebounds and four assists. Griffin finished with eight points in nine minutes off the bench, hitting a pair of 3's, while Tucker contributed five points, four rebounds, two assists and two steals in the win.

Farmingdale State returns to action on Saturday, December 6th when they travel to New York University for a 1:00 p.m. tip-off.