Hammel Nets Career High as Men's Basketball Topples Saint Michael's, 85-67
Links: Box Score
COLCHESTER, Vt. – Senior guard Troy Hammel (Valencia, Calif.) paced the attack of the Merrimack College men's basketball team with a career-high 33 points as the Warriors defeated Saint Michael's, 85-67, in road Northeast-10 Conference action for the Navy and Gold's first league win of the season at the Ross Sports Center Wednesday night.
The Basics
Score: Merrimack 85, St. Michael's 67
Records: Merrimack (5-3, 1-2 NE-10) | St. Michael's (1-5, 0-4 NE-10)
Location: Ross Sports Center | Colchester, Vt.
What They Said:
Head coach Bert Hammel: "Any time you can get a league win on the road, it's a good thing. Defensively we still have some things to clean up, and have to be better on the boards."
How It Happened
The Warriors opened the night on 10-3 run over the first 5:12 of game action. Senior guard Gelvis Solano (Harlem, N.Y.) hit consecutive three-pointers to start the run, followed by buckets from Anthony Barry (Uxbridge, Mass.) and Kyle Howes (Maynard, Mass.). Howes then hit a triple of his own to push the score to 13-6 with a tick over 14 minutes to play in the half.
With the Warriors holding a seven-point advantage, Merrimack embarked on a 14-2 run to put some space between them and their hosts. Hammel spearheaded the spurt, scoring 10 of the 14 points, including a pair of triples.
The Purple Knights answered with five unanswered points, but the Warriors' lead never dipped below 12 points over the final seven minutes. Merrimack led, 36-23, after 20 minutes powered by 12 points from Hammel and eight apiece for Barry and Solano.
Hammel and senior forward James Kennedy (Dorchester, Mass.) combined score Merrimack's first 15 points of the second half, including 11 from Hammel, to keep the Warriors comfortably in front. A three-point play from freshman Jordan Thornton (Dumfries, Va.) made it 54-38 Merrimack with 12:03 to play.
Solano's trey at the 7:57 mark increased Merrimack's lead to 20 points, 68-48, which was part of a stretch that saw Merrimack's Preseason All-American score seven of nine points in less than two minutes. From there the Purple Knights chipped away, using an 11-2 run to cut the deficit to 11, 70-59, with less than five minutes to play.
Merrimack's sharpshooter responded to keep the Purple Knights at an arm's length. Hammel hit back-to-back threes to push the Warriors' advantage to 14 points, tying his career high of 29 points in the process. After that point, Merrimack's lead never fell lower than 14 points. Hammel cemented his career night with the final four points of the game, scoring 33 of Merrimack's 85 points.
Inside The Numbers
- Hammel's career high came on some precise shooting. He finished 12-of-18 from the field, including 4-of-8 from beyond the arc, and was a perfect 5-for-5 from the charity stripe. He now is shooting nearly 48 percent from three-point range and 49 percent overall from the field
- Defensively, the Warriors put forth their best effort of the year. They held their opponent to 67 points, the fewest Merrimack has allowed this season. The Purple Knights shot just 35.4 percent from the field, struggling from beyond the arc as well (7-28)
- Solano joined Hammel in double figures with 19 points, the only two Merrimack starters who reached double digits. He now has scored at least 10 points in every game this season and in 18 consecutive dating back to his junior year
- Barry came off the bench to play in 31 minutes, scoring in double figures for the third time in the last four contests. He shot 7-of-13 from the floor, equaling his season high for field-goal attempts
- Milestone Watch: Hammel needs 20 more points to become the 42nd player in program history to reach 1,000 career points. His teammate and classmate, JT Strickland (Laurel, Md.), accomplished that feat just eight days ago against Stonehill
Up Next
The Warriors take on No. 20 Saint Anselm up in Manchester, N.H. on Saturday afternoon. Tipoff is slated for 3:30 p.m.
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