Clark Drops 29 to Beat Stonehill and Propel Men’s Basketball into Sole Possession of First-Place

EASTON, MASS.  – It will go down as a night to remember for freshman point guard Adam "Budd" Clark. In the final seconds of the second half with the Warriors down one, Clark pulled up at the free throw line and knocked down a jumper to give Merrimack the lead, one they would not relinquish. The Philly point guard finished the game with a game-high 29 points. The win gave the Warriors sole possession of first-place in the Northeast Conference with four regular season game remaining.

The Essentials
Score: Merrimack 66, Stonehill 63
Records: Merrimack (16-10, 10-2 NEC) | Stonehill (3-24, 1-11 NEC)
Location: Merkert Gymnasium

Rapid Recap

• The Warriors opened the game scoring the first eight points, which included two threes from Devon Savage. After a Stonehill basket to stop the run, Clark hit a jumper and Jordan McKoy hit a three to put Merrimack up by 11. The Skyhawks would battle back cutting the lead down to six with eight minutes left in the first half. Samba Diallo would score off a turnover to put the Warriors back up by eight. A layup by Stonehill at the four minute mark made it a one possession game. Diallo found the bottom of the net with a three to swell the lead to five. A Skyhawk score would send the advantage back down to three. The Warriors then scored six unanswered points to go up nine with a minute to play until halftime. Merrimack would head to the locker room up five.
• Both teams traded buckets for the first three minutes of the second half. Clark would hit a jumper to put the Warriors up by four. Stonehill then added six-point to take their first lead of the game. Merrimack found themselves down three with 15 minutes to go in the game. Two free throws from Clark got the lead down to one. The Skyhawks then increased their advantage to six. The Warriors then scored seven-points in a row to back up by one. Stonehill responded, going up by three with 10 minutes to play. A Clark jumper gave the Warriors back the lead by one. With three minutes to play the Skyhawks were up by five. Two free throws from Jordan Derkack shrunk the lead to three with a minute and a half to play. The Skyhawks added two free throws of their own to go back up five. Derkack drove the length of the court for a layup cutting the lead down to three. After a defensive stop, Clark would score on a drive to get the lead down to one. A missed free throw from the Skyhawks gave the Warriors the ball with under 15 seconds left in the game. Clark pulled up from the free throw line and knocked down the jumper, putting Merrimack up one. He would then hit two free throws to solidify the victory for the Warriors by three.

Notes and Numbers

• Clark also had six assists and two steals in the victory.   
• Bryan Etumnu scored nine points, grabbed seven rebound, and had five blocks.   
• Diallo had eight points and seven rebounds.

Up Next
Merrimack will take on Long Island Saturday afternoon in Hammel Court. Game time is set for 3 p.m.