Men’s Basketball Holds off Purchase
| Final | 1 | 2 | T | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Purchase St. | 38 | 38 | 76 |
|
Mitchell | 48 | 33 | 81 |
NEW LONDON, Conn. – Senior Jaylyn Clardy (Pensacola, Fla.) and junior Eddie Volkerts (New London, Conn.) combined for 47 points on Wednesday evening, helping the Mitchell College men's basketball team withstand Purchase College by a final of 81-76 in a non-conference clash at the Yarnall Athletic Center.
Clardy finished with 24 points on 8-17 shooting, to go along with six rebounds and two steals. Volkerts netted 23 points and grabbed eight rebounds for the Mariners, while freshman Abdul Mansaray (Jacksonville, Fla.) scored a collegiate career-high 12 points on 5-7 shooting, while adding three rebounds, three steals, two assists, and one block.
The Mariners jumped ahead immediately when Volkerts drilled a three-pointer seven seconds into the game, and never trailed during the opening 20 minutes. Twice the Panthers tied the score, but Mitchell closed the opening half on a 20-10 run build a 48-38 advantage at the intermission. Tides turned as the teams exited the locker rooms, however, as Purchase outscored the Mariners 23-13 over the first eight and a half minutes of the second half, knotting the score at 61-61 on a Matthew Phillips layup, forcing Mitchell to take a timeout.
The Panthers then went ahead for the first time on a basket by Rashid Nikiema, and held onto the lead until Volkerts tied the game on a layup with 1:29 on the clock. A bucket in the paint by senior Wilton Causey (Worcester Mass.), off an assist by freshman Collin Jefferson (Orlando, Fla.), put the Mariners back on top with 38 seconds remaining, and free throws by Volkerts and Clardy allowed Mitchell to escape with their sixth win of the season.
Despite shooting just 43.1% from the floor and going 2-20 from downtown, the Mariners outrebounded the Panthers 33-32, outscored them 42-30 in the paint, and forced 25 Purchase turnovers.
Purchase's Rashid Nikiema led all scorers with 36 points on 11-15 shooting and added eight rebounds, three assists, three steals, and a block. Chad Duke chipped in 13 points for the Panthers, while Wesley Fulcher added 12 off the bench.
The Mariners (6-2, 0-0 GNAC) will return to action when they host Dean College in their final home game of the semester on Saturday, December 7, at 1:00 pm. The Panthers (3-3, 0-0 Skyline) travel to face Elms College in their next game, also December 7.
