St. Michael's Sinks Men's Basketball in Overtime, 74-71
Links: Highlights | Box Score
NORTH ANDOVER, Mass. – The Merrimack College men's basketball team came out on the losing end of Wednesday's overtime contest vs. Saint Michael's, 74-71, in a game that featured 10 ties and 18 lead changes. The loss dropped the Warriors to 6-9 in the Northeast-10 Conference, while the Purple Knights improved to 3-12.
The Basics
Score: St. Michael's 74, Merrimack 71
Records: Merrimack (11-10, 6-9 NE-10) | St. Michael's (5-15, 3-12 NE-10)
Location: Hammel Court | North Andover, Mass.
How It Happened
Senior Troy Hammel (Valencia, Calif.) got off to a hot start, connecting on his first four three-pointers as the Warriors trailed by one, 13-12, 7:18 into the opening stanza. Junior Anthony Barry (Uxbridge, Mass.) ended a stretch of 3:48 with neither team scoring to put the Warriors up by two, 19-17, with 7:35 remaining in the first half.
Neither team led by more than four until a Gelvis Solano (Harlem, N.Y.) triple made it a six-point game with 50 seconds to play in the half. Freshman Ryan Boulter (Mansfield, Mass.) swished a trey of his own with seconds to spare as the Warriors led 33-27 after 20 minutes.
At the 15:51 mark of the second half and trailing by six points, the Purple Knights went on a 13-0 run spanning over four minutes of game time to turn their deficit into a seven-point lead at 47-40. Boulter ended the stretch with his second three-point of the game and a free throw from sophomore Kyle Howes (Maynard, Mass.) made it a 47-45 game at the midway point of the second stanza.
Matt Bonds, the conference's leading rebounder, contributed to the comeback with 20 points and 10 rebounds in the second half alone, including four straight points to make it 54-47 Saint Michael's with 6:44 to play. From there though the Warriors surged back, embarking on a 9-0 spurt capped off by another triple from Hammel and Merrimack had the lead back at 56-54.
Neither squad led by more the two points over the final five minutes of regulation. A layup from Levi Holmes III gave the Purple Knights a 64-63 lead with 16 seconds remaining, but senior point guard JT Strickland (Laurel, Md.) made on free throw to send the contest to overtime.
In the extra session, Solano and Zaire Williams exchanged three-pointers on each team's first possession. Bonds gave the Purple Knights the lead for good with a layup and a tip-in, making it a 71-69 game. Hammel saw a three-pointer fall short as time expired, allowing the Purple Knights to survive the back-and-forth affair.
Inside The Numbers
- The Purple Knights worked their way back into the game by collecting 23 second-chance points in the second half, with over half of their total output in the second stanza (37) coming on extra chances. Bonds fueled that aspect of the game, finishing with 31 points and 19 rebounds, eight of which came on the offensive glass
- Hammel led all Merrimack players in scoring with 26 points, after he set his career high earlier this season with 33 against St. Michael's
- Solano chipped in 13, while Strickland notched 15 of his own in the game where he was honored pregame for scoring his 1,000th career point with the Navy and Gold. Merrimack's point guard also finished one assist shy of a double-double
- Thirty-nine of the Warriors' 71 field-goal attempts came from beyond the arc, making 11 of them. Hammel made six of those 11, while Solano connected on a trio of treys
Up Next
The Warriors return home on Saturday to host the No. 7/9 Saint Anselm Hawks at Hammel Court at 3 p.m. The contest will be celebrated as Youth Day. Local programs are invited to attend the contest, free of charge. For more information, please contact Marketing/Promotion Coordinator Alyssa Crowley at crowleya@merrimack.edu.
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For continuing coverage of Merrimack College Athletics, visit MerrimackAthletics.com and follow the Warriors on Twitter and on Facebook.
