ITHACA, N.Y.--The men's basketball team routed Elmira (3-19, 1-12 Empire 8) 81-52  Sunday afternoon at Ben Light Gymnasium. Ithaca's win and Hartwick's win over Stevens Institute of Technology clinched a spot for the Bombers in the Empire 8 Championship Tournament, to be held Feb. 26-27 at St. John Fisher. Senior Tom Brown (Bayport-Blue Point/Bayport) led the way for the Bombers (17-7, 10-5 Empire 8) with a career-high 19 points and his third double-double.

Ithaca shut down the Elmira offense in the first half, holding the Soaring Eagles to just 10 points. Elmira shot just 4-of-36 from the field including 0-of-14 from three-point range in the opening half. The Bombers allowed the Soaring Eagles to score just three points over a span of more than 14 minutes. Ithaca's lead swelled from six points to 33 over that period, with a run of 22 unanswered points.

Elmira's 52 points were the fewest allowed by Ithaca this season. The Bombers shot better than 42 percent in the win, with the Soaring Eagles held under 28 percent.

Brown's points came on 6-of-10 shooting from the field and 5-of-6 from the line. He grabbed 11 rebounds, the second-highest total in his career. Junior Phil Barera (Belmont/Belmont, Mass.) led all players with 15 boards and added 17 points for his 11th double-double of the season.

Fellow junior Chris Cruz-Rivas (West Genesee/Syracuse) also reached double figures in scoring with 13 points. He and Barera each picked up a pair of blocks.

Freshman Sean Rossi (Sparta/Sparta, N.J.) picked up seven assists and four rebounds,

St. John Fisher amd Nazareth join Ithaca as the teams that will play in the Empire 8 playoffs with either Rochester Institute of Technology or Stevens Institute of Technology earning the final spot. Fisher will be the top seed, with the other seedings dependent on the remaining regular-season results.

The Bombers close the regular season Friday at Stevens.

Box Score