AMCATS Hold Off Men's Basketball
PAXTON, Mass – The Mitchell College men's basketball team came up short against Anna Maria College, 84-77, on Thursday night in a non-conference game at the Fuller Recreation Center.
Junior Jaylyn Clardy (Pensacola, Fla.) poured in a career-high 30 points (13-30), and added six rebounds, four assists, and four steals. Sophomore Brandon Lee (Stockton, Clai.) recorded his second double-double of the season with 15 points, 11 rebounds, five assists, and two steals, while senior Dontae Pollard (Fort Walton Beach, Fla.) finished with a season-best 14 points, to go along with nine rebounds and two assists. Freshman guard Zhangir Dyussenov (Astana, Kazakhstan) chipped in nine points for Mitchell, the most of his collegiate career, shooting 3-3 from three-point range.
Back and forth early, the Mariners jumped out to a 15-10 advantage with 11:16 remaining in the first half after Dontae Pollard converted on a layup. Following an AMCATS timeout, the home squad closed the half on a 35-22 run to carry a 45-37 advantage into the intermission.
The Mariners trimmed the deficit to one point when Dyussenov drilled a three-pointer with 13:57 to go. Mitchell then knotted the score at 55-55 seconds later following a Brandon Lee free throw, and then proceeded to take a two-point lead on a jumper by Jaylyn Clardy with 13:03 on the clock.
Not long after, Ray Carter Jr. would sink two free throws to put the AMCATS back on top, where they would stay for the remainder of the game, as their lead grew as large as 11 in the waning moments after a Brandon Hulecki free throw.
Gabe Armstead paced a balanced AMCATS attack, finishing with a team-high 18 points and five rebounds. Jopaul Mckrieth added 17 points and 12 rebounds, while Sean Zabari finished with 16 points and six rebounds in the win.
The Mariners shot a season-high 46.2% (6-13) from three-point territory, yet were a season low 39.1% (9-23) from the free throw line. Anna Maria was able to outrebound Mitchell 55-46, and scored 40 points in the paint. Each team committed 17 turnovers, and the Mariners handed out three more assists than the AMCATS.
Mitchell (0-5, 0-0 GNAC) will return to action on Saturday, December 2nd, when they open up GNAC play with a home showdown against Lasell University at 1:00 pm at the Yarnall Athletic Center. The AMCATS (4-4, 0-0 GNAC) travel to New England College to kick off conference play on Saturday, December 2nd.