The Ithaca College men’s basketball team went 1–1 at the Land of Magic Tournament in Daytona, Florida. The Bombers fell to No. 5 Hamilton College 92–77 on Dec. 29 and defeated Ursinus College 95–77 on Dec. 30.

In the opening game, the Continentals jumped out to a 9–2 lead over the Blue and Gold within the first 2:30 , but the Bombers fought back to take a 16–15 lead with 12:33 remaining in the first half. The attack was led by senior captain Matt Flood and junior guard Sebastian Alderete, with both chipping in six points on the run.

Hamilton would bounce back to take a 23–22 lead with 8:11 remaining in the first half, and would cruise to a 44–34 halftime lead. The Bombers were never able to regain a lead, and the Continentals would advance to the tournament championship after the 15-point victory.

Alderete led the South Hill Squad with 21 points, while Flood would add 16 and junior captain Riley Thompson finished with 12.

In the consolation matchup, the Bombers stumbled in the first half, trailing 43–34 at halftime, and would immediately get a technical foul to make the deficit 11 before the second half was underway. The Bombers responded by going on an 8–0 run at the 17-minute mark to cut the lead to three points. The teams traded points until the South Hill squad was able to take a 54–53 lead with 12:43 remaining as freshman guard George Sikoryak III scored a layup.

After both teams reached a 55–55 tie, the Blue and Gold erupted for a 23–5 run to take a commanding 78–60 lead with 6:54 remaining. The Bombers would continue to push for the remainder of the game, eventually sealing the victory by 18 points.

The Bombers were led by sophomore forward Bryan Karl, who scored 25 points. Alderete contributed 16 points and ten rebounds, while Flood scored 12 points and Thompson added 10.

The Bombers finished the 2018 portion of their season with a 5–4 record, and return to action at 7 p.m. Jan. 4 against Union College in Schenectady, New York.