Men's Basketball Drops NECC Opener to Elms

NEW LONDON, Conn. – Five Elms College players scored in double figures in an 84-68 victory at Mitchell College on Saturday afternoon in New England Collegiate Conference men's basketball action at the Yarnall Athletic Center.

Jerry Buchanon netted a game-high 29 points and added six assists and six steals to pace the Blazers (3-5 overall, 2-0 NECC). Keeshaun King and Kadar Lynch contributed 11 points apiece while Kenny Lockett and Conny Ihearahu each chipped in with 10. Elms shot 53 percent in the contest and outscored Mitchell 40-22 in the paint.

Donavan McClean led Mitchell (1-4 overall, 0-1 NECC) with 21 points and seven rebounds. Parris Hill finished with 14 points and two blocks while Devonta Mosley came off the bench to add 11 points.

As the teams traded blows early, Hill picked up two quick fouls and took a seat on the bench just under five minutes into the game. Four minutes later, a layup by Lockett sparked a 13-2 Elms run that put the visiting team in front 28-16 with 7:50 to play in the half. 

The Blazers played tough defense the entire half and bumped the lead to as many as 16 before taking a 40-28 into the locker room at intermission. Elms cashed in on 13 of 18 trips to the free throw line in the stanza as Mitchell was whistled for a total of 16 fouls. Buchanon netted 19 of his 29 points in the half and shot 7-for-8 from the floor.

A three-pointer by Alan Morgan opened the second half and got the Mariners back to within single digits, but it was as close as they would get. An 11-0 Elms run later pushed the margin to 20 at 56-36 with 15:35 remaining, with four Blazers contributing buckets during the stretch. 

Trailing by 22 midway through the second half, Mitchell made a dent in the lead with nine straight points and cut the deficit to 71-58 on a jumper by McClean with 7:11 to go. However, a quick timeout by Elms got things back on track, and Buchanon answered with his final basket of the night to surpass his career high in scoring.

Mitchell will next play at Sacred Heart University on Sunday, December 14 at 3:30 p.m. Elms returns to action at Framingham State University on Saturday, December 13 at 1 p.m.