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Elmira, NY -- The Elmira College men's basketball team (1-3) rallied from a five point halftime deficit to claim their first win of the season as they downed Hilbert College (3-1), 74-64. Elmira used a strong second half effort to seal the win, knocking down 60% of their shots in the second half, six of those makes coming from beyond the arc.

Elmira was led by third-year talent Neil Randolph '15, who scored a career-high 32 points and pulled down a team high nine rebounds.  Randolph's 32 points is the most an Elmira player has scored since the 2008-09 season when former 1,000 point scorer Bobby DiPiazza '11 dropped 32 against Nazareth on February 24, 2009.

Also playing a large role in today's win was sharp-shooting Josh Keys '14.  The senior captain found his rhythm in the second half as he scored 17 of his game's 23 points in the final half of play.  Of his 23 points, 18 came on three point buckets as he went 6-of-9 from the arc. 

Elmira controlled the early goings of the first half, but foul trouble and a nine minute scoring drought turned into a 26-15 lead for Hilbert, their largest lead of the game.  However, Elmira would claw back into the half and would eventually go on to score the final five points of the first half, cutting the deficit to 34-29 at the break.

A focused Elmira team came out of halftime, putting together a quick 9-2 run to take their first lead of the game since the 12:05 mark of the first half.  EC's Randolph and Keys scored all of Elmira's nine points during the run.

The Soaring Eagles used another timely scoring run as they outscored Hilbert 9-0 to take a 50-41 lead with 11:47 to play.  Like their previous run, Keys and Randolph combined for all nine points. 

However, Hilbert would reclaim the lead at the 5:48 mark at 55-53 and would eventually hold a three point edge with five minutes to play.  From that point on, Elmira would outscore the Hawks 19-6, sealing their first win of the 2013-14 season as well as giving Hilbert their first taste of defeat on the year.

Today's win snaps a three year winless stretch in the month of November, with Elmira's last win dating back to November 19th when EC upended Albright College, 77-70. 

Elmira will have a quick turnaround as they host Fredonia State tomorrow in a non-conference matchup.  Tip-off is scheduled for 2:00 p.m. at Speidel Gymnasium in Elmira, NY.