MBB Drops NECC Opener at Daniel Webster

NASHUA, N.H. – The Daniel Webster College men's basketball team downed Mitchell College, 68-53, in the New England Collegiate Conference opener for both clubs Tuesday night at the Mario Vagge Gymnasium.

Chris Hanson and Jonathan Smalls notched 12 points apiece and 12 different Daniel Webster men's basketball players reached the scoring column. Hanson moved into fourth place on the all-time DWC career scoring list with his 1,405th point in the first half, surpassing Mark Goodwin '92 who retired with 1,404. He also added seven rebounds and a game-high four assists.

Daris Cosby provided a spark off the bench for DWC (5-2, 1-0 NECC) with eight points and a game-high eight rebounds while Chris Voukides and Kevin Gates notched nine points apiece. Keith Speed chipped in with seven points.

Junior Julio Contreras led the Mariners (1-8, 0-1 NECC) with a game-high 20 points including four three-pointers, while classmate Paul Jefferson added 14 points. Freshman Jamall McDaniel chipped in with seven points while rookie Chris Thomas led Mitchell with six boards.

The Eagles, who won their third straight, dominated inside. DWC finished with a 46-28 rebounding advantage–including a decisive 17-8 advantage on the offensive glass–and added 40 points in the paint to just 12 for the Mariners.

Daniel Webster trailed only once, a 5-4 deficit with 16:19 left in the opening half, and took advantage of cold Mitchell shooting. The Mariners managed just six first half-field goals, allowing DWC to stitch together an 21-6 run that consumed just under 11 minutes and built a 25-11 lead with 5:42 to go in the first.

The Eagles shot 47-percent in the opening frame and held a 33-17 lead at the break.

In the second stanza, Mitchell pulled within 14 on a Tyler Blier layup with 16:19 remaining, but Smalls answered with a free throw and layup. Gates then followed with a nifty inside spin move and Cosby knocked down a 20-foot jumper to extend the lead out to 21 (46-25) with 14:37 left, and the Eagles never let the Mariners closer than 15 the rest of the way.

Mitchell next hosts Southern Vermont in a NECC matchup on Saturday, December 11 at 5:00 p.m.