Men’s Basketball Has Winning Streak Snapped by Saints

BOSTON, Mass. – The Mitchell College men's basketball team saw their two game winning streak come to an end on the road Saturday afternoon, falling to Emmanuel College 74-62 in a GNAC game at the Jean Yawkey Center. The Mariners drop to 2-4 in conference play with the loss, while the Saints improve to 3-3 against GNAC opponents.

Mitchell junior Jaylyn Clardy (Pensacola, Fla.) led all scorers with 31 points, and added 10 assists and three steals. It marked the second straight game that Clardy has surpassed 30 points scoring and was the third time this season he has poured in 30 or more points. Junior Kenny Lewis (Orlando, Fla.) added 11 points off the bench for the Mariners, who struggled shooting the ball, finishing just 33.3% overall from the floor and 15.4% from downtown.

The Saints opened the game by scoring six consecutive points and pulled ahead 12-2 on a layup by Donte Pope with just under five minutes gone by. The Mariners then outscored the Saints 29-23 over the remainder of the first half and trailed by just four, 35-31, as the game reached the midway point. Emmanuel was able to hold onto their advantage throughout the second half, countering every time the Mariners seemed poised to cut into the deficit. Mitchell was able to make it a nine-point game two times down the stretch, on baskets by Jaylyn Clardy at the 11:10 mark and with 10:22 remaining, but Pope answered both times with baskets for Emmanuel, and that was as close as the Mariners were able to get.

Pope paced the Saints with 20 points, eight rebounds, and four assist. Ryan Grijalva added 15 points and five assists for Emmanuel, while Mahari Guerrier finished with 10 points and a game-high 21 rebounds.

The Saints were able to use size to their advantage, outrebounding the Mariners 49-31 and outscoring Mitchell 44-22 in the paint. Emmanuel also received 21 points from their bench to just 10 for visiting squad, and they shot the ball at a 44.6% clip on the day.

The Mariners (5-12, 2-4 GNAC) will look to get back on track when they host the University of Saint Joseph in a GNAC battle on Wednesday, January 24th, at 7:00 pm. The Saints (7-10, 3-3 GNAC) return to play on Wednesday, January 24th, at home against Regis College.