MBB Remains Undefeated at Home After Rallying Past Bryant & Stratton

NEW LONDON, Conn. – The Mitchell College men's basketball team rallied from a two-point halftime deficit and ran away from Bryant & Stratton College (Albany) 84-69 Wednesday evening in a non-conference showdown at the Yarnall Athletic Center. With the win, the Mariners close out the regular season undefeated at home (13-0) for the first time in the program's Division III era. The win was also the ninth in a row for the Mitchell men, matching the longest winning streak for the program since the 2013-2014 season when the Mariners reeled off nine straight victories on route to a 19-8 overall record.

Alfonzo Stokes (Bloomfield, Conn.) paced the Mariners, going 13-14 from the free throw line on his way to a game-high 18 points. The senior guard also grabbed eight rebounds, tallied five assists, and registered four steals.

Three other Mariners finished in double-figures scoring, as Jalen Benson (New London, Conn.) chipped in 17 points on 8-13 shooting, and Mikey Buscetto (Waterford, Conn.) finished with a 14 point, 10 rebound double-double, and also added four rebounds and four steals.

Robert Zirlis (Clinton, Conn.) tacked on 11 points of his own, while Dontae Pollard (Fort Walton Beach, Fla.) and Bishop Taylor (Aberdeen, M.D.) each scored eight points off the bench for Mitchell, who shot 42.9% from the field and 89.7% from the free throw line.  

It was an uncharacteristically slow start for the Mitchell men, who found themselves down 16-2 five minutes into the game following a three-pointer by Detric Hearst of the Bobcats. The Mariners chipped away, however, continuing to draw fouls and producing an 18-18 line from the charity stripe in the opening half. Mitchell closed the half on an 8-0 run, with baskets from Stokes, Taylor, and Zirlis helping to trim the deficit to just two points entering the intermission.

A Zirlis layup on an assist from Buscetto kicked off the second half and knotted the score at 39-39. After a dunk by Bryant & Stratton's Denali Burton, Stokes answered with a shot from long range, which gave the Mariners their first lead of the game, 42-41. Ahmani Browne (St. John's, Antigua) and Benson then each converted layups to push the Mitchell advantage to five points, and from there the home squad was off and running.

The Bobcats remained within shouting distance, not letting the Mitchell lead grow to double-figures until Buscetto sank a three ball at the half's midway point and Benson followed with a layup, giving the home team a 13-point edge with 9:49 remaining.

The Mariners continued to build their lead, which grew as large as 20 points down the stretch, and held off their physical opponents from Bryant & Stratton. Mitchell again shot well from the free throw line in the second half, converting eight of 11 opportunities, while the Bobcats were just 9-17 from the stripe on the night.  

Denali Burton scored team-best 17 points in the loss, while Detric Hearst (15 points), De'arra Avery (14 points, eight rebounds), and Trent McNeill (11 points) each finished the game in double-figures.

The Mariners (19-3 overall, 4-0 NECC) will look for their 10^th consecutive victory when they return to conference play on Saturday, February 11^th, traveling to face Lesley University at 3:30 pm. The Bobcats (10-10 overall) return to action to Wednesday, February 15^th, when they host Bryant & Stratton (Syracuse).