Box Score The William Smith College basketball team shot 53.6 percent from the floor in the first half of tonight's Liberty League contest at St. Lawrence, but still trailed by six. In the second half, the Herons were unable to maintain their hot shooting and fell to the conference front-runner 76-63.
 
The Saints (11-3, 5-0 Liberty) outrebounded William Smith 37-26 and went on a 3-point binge, sinking 12-of-23 from beyond the arc. The Herons (8-6, 2-3) made 15-of-28 first half field attempts, but just 8-of-26 after the break.
 
St. Lawrence got off to a fast start, racing out to a 15-6 lead on the strength of five 3-pointers, including four by Kara McDuffee. William Smith junior guard Sasha Borenstein capped a 16-7 run with a trey to tie the game at 22-all midway through the first half. With 5:35 to go, junior guard Erin O'Brien made a layup to tie the game at 31, the fourth and final tie of the night.
 
The Saints outscored William Smith 12-6 to end the half, including two more 3-pointers. Heron sophomore forward Chloe Hayter led all scorers with 17 points at halftime. She finished the game with 23 points and nine rebounds.
 
SLU's Kelly Legg scored the first five points of the second half, pushing the Saints' lead into double digits, 48-37. Junior guard Jacqueline Murphy stopped the run with a layup, but then St. Lawrence went on a 19-6 that blew the game open.
 
Hayter scored four straight points followed by four in a row from Borenstein close the game to 14, 67-53, with 6:28 remaining. Over the next four minutes, neither team scored a point. SLU finally ended its nearly seven-minute scoring drought on a McDuffee layup, effectively ending the Herons' hopes for a comeback.
 
Borenstein gave the Herons 12 points off the bench. O'Brien had 11 points and six steals. Senior guard Sydni Salvatore dished out a team-high six assists.
 
McDuffee produced 23 points, seven rebounds, six steals, and five assists. She had a team-high five 3-pointers. Legg recorded a double-double on 16 points and 10 rebounds. Amanda Roberts handed out a game-high 14 assists.
 
The Herons will be back in action on Saturday, Jan. 19, when they visit Clarkson for another Liberty League game. Tipoff in Potsdam is scheduled for 2 p.m.