Albany, NY – CMCC Men's Basketball brought its long four-day road trip to a close with a 77-74 victory over the Albany College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences on Friday night. A tired Mustangs team broke a 69-69 tie with three minutes remaining to close out the game and go 3-1 over their four contests. Sophomore All-American Khaden Moore led the way with 23 points, his eighth game with 20+ points this season.
"I was pleased with our effort and focus tonight," said head coach Dave Gonyea. "Playing four games in a row and six games in nine days, all on the road, is a challenge for any team. We used a lot of guys to help manage the grind of the trip, but ultimately your marquee players have to step up. Our bigs, Khaden, Alex, Tim, and Sascha, rotated well and gave us strong performances. J.T. was limited by injury, playing only one full game and seventeen minutes in another. Our guard play was solid, though the wear and tear showed as the trip went on."
Central Maine opened the game with a 15-8 lead thanks to Ryan White and Creighty Dickson. The two freshmen stepped up early with White knocked down two three-pointers and Dickson scoring seven points. The lead climbed to 19-11, but that eight-point advantage would prove to be the visitors' largest of the night.
An 8-0 run by the Panthers tied the game and set up a seesawing final eight minutes of the half, as the lead changed hands ten times. Alex Carrillo scored five of ACPHS' final seven points to give his side a 38-36 advantage at the halftime break.
Moore took over in the second half, scoring the Mustangs' first six points and putting up 19 in the final 20 minutes. Will Duke and Keiontay Marsh connected on shots to tie the game at 51-51 after five minutes. Moore then evened it up at 55-55 with back-to-back baskets after the Panthers pulled ahead, and Luke Jamieson gave Central Maine its first lead of the half from the free throw line with 12:15 remaining.
The Panthers would never get it back, but that didn't stop them from pushing the Mustangs right to the wire. CMCC never led by more than six points the rest of the way. Albany evened it up at 69 with 3:44 left on the clock after Clarence Claiborne Jr. splashed a three. Alexandre Brigitte stepped up for two key buckets to put Central Maine back in front. Logan Yohe got a layup with ten seconds left to make it a one-point game. However, Will Duke closed things out with a pair of free throws and a steal on the other end to finish the game.
Duke had 18 points behind Moore's 23. Dickson and Marsh both finished with nine while White had eight and Brigitte six. Jamieson was the only other Central Maine player to score with four points. The Mustangs once again controlled the boards, outrebounding the Panthers 37-30. The visitors only shot 41.0% from the field, opening the door for ACPHS to keep it close by shooting 54.5% to make up for their 21 turnovers. Carrillo (20), Josh Bendele (17), Yohe (15), and Claiborne Jr. (12) all scored in double figures for Albany.
Up next, CMCC heads to NHTI on January 22nd for its seventh straight away game to start the second semester. The Mustangs finally return home on January 24th against the Washington County Golden Eagles.
