Senior co-captain and starting center Louis Kail stood in the locker room below the Ben Light Gymnasium today, soaking in what had just happened in the previous two hours.

And with good reason.

Kail scored 16 points on 7-of-9 shooting to help guide the men’s basketball team to a come-from-behind 88–84 win against Nazareth College, clinching the Bombers their first Empire 8 Championship since 2002. Ithaca will host the four-team postseason tournament next weekend.

“I’m so happy right now,” Kail said, smiling. “It’s just been a great season.”

A great season that, just three weeks ago, looked bleak for a struggling Blue and Gold squad. Following an 82–70 home loss to the Rochester Institute of Technology Jan. 29, the Bombers faced an uphill battle to qualify for the Empire 8 tournament. Ithaca responded by winning six of its final seven games to secure the top seed.

Junior guard Brendan Rogers, who tallied nine points and two steals in 22 minutes of action, said the team turned its season around in early February.

“It’s been unbelievable,” Rogers said. “Three weeks ago we were out of it and now we’re regular season champs.”

But the championship-clinching win against the Golden Flyers was certainly not easy for the Blue and Gold, as the team struggled on defense in the first half and entered halftime trailing 51–34.

Head Coach Jim Mullins said he gave the team a subdued speech at halftime.

“We asked them if they wanted to travel to New Jersey next week or play at home,” Mullins said. “It really wasn’t too heated, we just reasoned with them a little bit, tried to calm them down.”

The second half was virtually the complete opposite, with the Bombers outscoring Nazareth 54–33. Ithaca combined solid offensive production in the post with timely defensive stops to get back into the game. But it was a certain junior forward – aptly dubbed “Mr. Clutch” by his teammates after today’s game – that sealed the victory.

With the Bombers trailing 82–81 with under a minute left, junior point guard Sean Burton brought the ball up the court. After a series of screens and passes, Rogers found Sean Leahy at the top of the three-point line wide open. Nazareth closed in on the 6-foot-7-inch forward, but not before Leahy released his shot, arching perfectly and swishing through the net to give Ithaca an 84–82 lead with 38 seconds remaining.

Nazareth then tried to beat the Bombers back down the floor, but instead lost the ball out of bounds and essentially gave away any chance of winning the game. Burton hit four three throws down the final stretch to seal the win.

Kail said he forecasted a preview of things to come during a sideline conversation with Leahy earlier in the second half.

“When Sean came out early in the second half, I just said to him on the bench, ‘You know you’re going to hit a big shot,’” Kail said. “And he said, ‘You say that every game Lou.’ And I told him, ‘No, you really are going to hit a big shot tonight.’ And he did.”

Leahy finished with 17 points, to go along with five rebounds and three assists. Junior center Jeff Bostic continued his torrid rebounding pace, collecting 11 points and a career-best 20 rebounds. Bostic also had three steals and three blocks on defense.

Sophomore forward Tom Brown also had a solid game off the bench, adding 12 points and three rebounds. Mullins said Brown’s performance was a welcome addition to the Bombers’ offensive attack.

“Tom Brown gave us a huge lift,” Mullins said. “He’s playing better and better and he looks more relaxed. That was huge."

Ithaca will face fourth-seeded St. John Fisher College in the first round of the tournament next Friday. No. 2 Stevens Institute of Technology, who Ithaca defeated 93–82 yesterday, will face third-seeded Nazareth. Game times have yet to be determined.