| 2/11/2005 9:49:48 PM

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ROCHESTER, NY -- The RIT men's basketball team won their third straight game and seven in their last eight with a 70-60 win over Utica College on Friday night.

RIT started slowly, scoring just two points in the first 3:29 but picked it up as the half went on, building a nine-point lead on a jump shot by Brian Hill (Rochester, NY/Wheatland-Chili) (Rochester, NY/Wheatland-Chili) making it 24-15.

Utica used a 13-4 run at the end of the first half to cut RIT's lead to 31-28 at the break. Center Tim Troy led the Pioneers with seven points in the first half as Utica shot 44% from the floor.

The Tigers shot 45.8% in the first on 11-of-24 shooting, making 3-of-7 from behind the arc and 6-of-9 free throws.

Senior Sean Murphy (Buffalo, NY/Williamsville North) (Buffalo, NY/Williamsville North) paced the Tigers with seven points in the first half on 3-of-7 shooting.

Brian Hill (Rochester, NY/Wheatland-Chili) came off the bench to score six points in the opening stanza, making 4-of-4 from the charity stripe.

RIT came out in the second and quickly opened a 15-point lead thanks to an 18-3 run to open the half and take a 46-31 lead.

The Tigers built their lead to 19 points on a layup by Kyle Goff (Manassas, VA/Stonewall Jackson) (Manassas, VA/Stonewall Jackson) with 11:32 to play, making the score 59-40.

The Pioneers kept their composure and whittled away at RIT's lead thanks in large part to a 20-5 run that cut the lead to 64-60 with a little less than three minutes to play.

RIT outscored Utica 10-0 over the final 2:46 , going on to the 70-60 win.

RIT shot 50% from the floor in the second half, making 12-of-24 shots. The Tigers held the advantage from the line, making 12-of-14 from the foul line.

Murphy finished with a game-high 18 points, grabbing five rebounds. Kyle Goff (Manassas, VA/Stonewall Jackson) added 16 points and had nine rebounds. Fran Snyder (Buffalo, NY/Bishop Timon St. Jude) (Buffalo, NY/Bishop Timon St. Jude) had 14 points, six rebounds and three assists.

Reggie Shore (Amityville, NY/Amityville) (Amityville, NY/Amityville) added seven points and dished out four assists.

The win improves RIT to 15-7 on the season and 9-2 in the Empire 8. Utica falls to 10-11 overall and 5-5 in the Empire 8.

RIT hosts Hartwick College on Saturday afternoon at 4 p.m.