Men's Basketball Sinks Mariners

Chris Kendrick (@CKendrick86)

NEW LONDON, Conn. – The Elms College men's basketball team used a 23-6 first-half run to collect an 84-68 victory over host Mitchell College in a New England Collegiate Conference tilt at Yarnall Athletic Center Saturday afternoon.

The opening seven minutes of play featured seven lead changes and two ties with a jumper from Mitchell junior forward Donavan McClean (Jersey City, N.J.) giving the Mariners a 12-11 lead with 13:26 remaining in the half. Over the next nine minutes of play, the Blazers executed a 23-6 run, fueled by seven points from junior guard Jerry Buchanon (Windsor, Conn.), to build a 34-18 lead over Mitchell with 4:00 on the clock. Mitchell closed the half on a 10-6 run to cut the Elms advantage to 40-28 at the break.

The Mariners came out of the half with six points in the first minute of play to trim the Blazers lead to 43-34 with 19:05 to play. Elms began to pull away from Mitchell with a 17-7 run over the next five minutes, powered by six points from senior forward Kenny Lockett (Atlanta, Ga.), to regain a 60-41 lead. A three-point play from Elms junior forward Kadar Lynch (Springfield, Mass.) gave the Blazers their largest lead of the game, 71-49, with 9:49 to play. The Mariners mounted on last rally, orchestrating a 16-6 run over the next seven minutes, featuring six straight buckets from McClean, to make it a 77-65 game with 2:25 remaining. The Blazers held Mitchell to four points in the final two minutes to secure the 84-68 win.

Elms had five players register double digit point totals in the win, led by season-high 29 points from Buchanon. Buchanon was 11-of-15 from the floor with six assists, six steals and three rebounds. Lynch netted 11 points with seven rebounds, while freshman guard Keeshaun King  (Jacksonville, Fla.) recorded a career-high 11 points. Sophomore guard Conny Ihearahu (Largo, Md.) grabbed a game-high eight rebounds with 10 points, and Lockett added 10 points, five boards and three blocks in the win.

McClean had a team-high 21 points for the Mariners, connecting on 10-of-20 field goal attempts, with seven rebounds. Senior forward Parris Hill (Stockton, Calif.) tallied 14 points with three rebounds, three assists and two blocks, while junior forward Devonta Mosley (Gainesville, Fla.) contributed 11 points and four rebounds.

The Blazers controlled the rebounding battle, 38-33, during the contest. Elms shot 52.8% (28-of-53) from the floor, including a season-high 50% (7-of-14) from three-point range, and 72.4% (21-of-29) from the foul line. Mitchell converted 40.9% (27-of-66) of their field goals, including 33.3% (8-of-24) of their three-pointers, and 75% (6-of-8) from the free throw line.

The Blazers improve to 3-5 overall, and 2-0 in NECC play, while Mitchell drops to 1-4 on the season, and 0-1 in the NECC. Elms returns to action with a non-conference game at Framingham State Saturday December 13^th at 1:00 p.m. The Mariners play at Sacred Heart Sunday December 14^th at 1:00 p.m.

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