MBB Clips Becker From Long Range

NEW LONDON, Conn. – Mitchell College knocked down a season-high 12 three-pointers en route to a 72-48 victory over Becker College on Wednesday night in New England Collegiate Conference men's basketball action at the Yarnall Athletic Center.

Hasani Williams, who entered the night with two career three-pointers, led the long-range attack with four treys and a game-high 18 points. Elijah Baidoo chipped in a season-high 12 points off the bench and drained both of his attempts from deep, and Matt Finke added 11 points with a pair of triples.

Guney Kilitcioglu paced Becker with 12 points and shot 3-for-6 from beyond the arc. Jamir Carr and Mateus Ribeiro each contributed 10 points. Ribeiro also grabbed a game-high 12 rebounds to notch his eighth double-double of the season.

Becker's only lead came after Kilitcioglu buried a three-pointer on the team's opening possession of the contest. Mitchell pulled back in front on a Jalen Benson layup and never trailed again, although the Hawks kept it close until the midway point of the stanza.

The Mariners gained some separation thanks to an 11-3 run in which Baidoo, Marvin Baker and Malik Chase all drained threes to open up a 29-19 lead with 5:33 left in the half. Benson and Finke later combined for Mitchell's final 11 points of the period and a 40-25 lead at the break.

Williams, who scored Mitchell's first 11 points after intermission, got things rolling with a three to start the second half. Becker responded with a 7-0 run to get within 11, but Williams again answered from deep to pad the margin. After the Hawks trimmed the deficit to single digits following a three by Rose-Wheatley with 13:35 to go, Williams canned his final trey of the night to make it 46-32.

The Mariners later used a 14-1 run to blow the game open, with Chase and Baidoo each supplying five points during the spurt. Becker went ice cold during the stretch, going eight minutes in between field goals.

Mitchell (8-12 overall, 5-2 NECC) will next play at Lesley University on Saturday, February 8 at 1:30 p.m. Becker (10-11 overall, 3-5 NECC) returns to action at home against Eastern Nazarene College on Saturday at 1 p.m.