MBB Holds Off Lesley in OT

NEW LONDON, Conn. – The Mitchell College men's basketball team held on for an 84-79 overtime victory over Lesley University on Tuesday night in a New England Collegiate Conference match-up at the Yarnall Athletic Center.

Senior Joshua Ford led all scorers with 26 points and pulled down 11 rebounds to register his 16th double-double of the season for the Mariners (13-4 overall, 9-1 NECC). Classmate Anthony Epps chipped in with 18 points and shot 4-for-8 from three-point range while sophomore Frank Martin added 14 points.

Branden Padgett led Lesley (2-14 overall, 0-7 NECC) with 17 points on 7-for-7 shooting in 15 minutes off the bench. Jacob DiDomenico posted season highs of 16 points and 13 rebounds to record his first career double-double, and Trevonn Lewis added 15 points and five assists.

A dunk by junior Parris Hill put Mitchell ahead 60-51 with 8:32 remaining in regulation, but Padgett nearly erased the deficit by himself over the next three minutes. He netted nine straight points for the Lynx to whittle the margin to 61-60, and Mike Kaufman later banged home a three to give Lesley its first lead of the half with 4:38 to go.

The Mariners pulled back in front and looked to be in the driver's seat in the closing minute, leading by four with 22 seconds remaining. But a free throw by Lewis cut the lead to three, and a missed front end of a one-and-one gave the Lynx the ball back in the final seconds. Padgett raced up the left side of the court and pulled up for the game-tying three from the wing with two seconds remaining.

Mitchell figured to have one final crack at the win in regulation, but Justin Rosa stole the inbounds pass and missed a three-pointer that would have won the game. Instead, both teams settled in for the five-minute overtime period tied at 69-69.

Lesley struck first in extra time, getting lay-ups by DiDomenico and Padgett to take a four-point advantage. The Mariners went without a basket for the first two minutes of extra time, but senior Alex Del Rio finally put an end to the drought with a deep three to cut the deficit to one.

After Mitchell took a 76-75 lead on a free throw by Ford, Martin made the defensive play of the game by coming up with a steal near the midcourt line and going in for lay-up with 29 ticks left on the clock. The Mariners then sealed the game from the free throw line by going 6-for-6 in the final 24 seconds.

Lesley shot 49 percent from the floor and held a 37-31 advantage on the glass. Mitchell shot just 44 percent but outscored the Lynx 22-12 at the charity stripe.

Ford played all 45 minutes and also recorded three steals and a pair of blocks. Del Rio dished out a team-high five assists and contributed five points. Sophomore Hector Aleman also gave the Mariners solid minutes off the bench, finishing with six points and four assists in 14 minutes.

Mitchell returns to action at Daniel Webster College on Thursday, January 30 at 7 p.m. Lesley will next host Elms College on Thursday at 8 p.m. at Buckingham, Browne, and Nichols.