Lasers Sink Men’s Basketball in GNAC Opener
| Final | 1 | 2 | T | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Mitchell (8-4,2-1 Great Northeast) | 31 | 47 | 78 |
|
Lasell (8-4,1-0 Great Northeast) | 40 | 51 | 91 |
NEWTON, Mass. – The Mitchell College men's basketball team suffered a loss in their first game of the new year, falling 91-78 to Lasell University at the Lasell Athletic Complex in the opening Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) contest of the season for both teams.
Senior Jaylyn Clardy (Pensacola, Fla.) netted a team-high 21 points, while adding eight rebounds. Junior Eddie Volkerts (New London, Conn.) added 20 points and eight rebounds for Mitchell. Fellow senior Robert Zirlis (Clinton, Conn.) poured in 12 points off the bench, while junior Brandon Lee (Stockton, Cali.) had 11 points and five boards in the loss.
A back and forth start to the game found the Mariners up 27-25 with 6:44 remaining in the first half after Brandon Lee and Walker Baillargeon (Norwich, Conn.) each made a free throw. The Lasers knotted the score one minute later on a Marcus Lewis layup, and then outscored Mitchell 13-4 over the final five minutes and 47 seconds of the half to carry a 40-31 advantage into the locker room.
The Lasers maintained their lead the rest of the way, outscoring the Mariners by four points in the second stanza, while shooting 54% from the floor and 46.7% from three-point territory. Mitchell shot 45.6% overall, but were just 5-17 from downtown and turned the ball over 15 times.
Karim Belhouchet paced Lasell with a game-high 26 points. Esmer Madesko recorded a double-double with 20 points and 10 assists, while Marcus Lewis finished with a double-double; notching 17 points and 10 rebounds,
The Mariners (8-4, 0-1 GNAC) will look to rebound when they return to their home court on Saturday, January 11, for a GNAC clash with Johnson & Wales University. The Lasers (8-4, 1-0 GNAC) return to action on Tuesday, January 7, when they will battle GNAC foe Colby-Sawyer College on the road.
