MIDDLEBURY — The Middlebury College men’s basketball team saw a nine-game home winning streak end with a 71-62 loss to visiting University of Maine, Fort Kent, on Saturday. The Bengals moved to 6-10, while the Panthers fell to 13-3.
Middlebury was set to return to action on Tuesday night by hosting Lyndon State, but that game was postponed. They next visit Williams on Friday at 7 p.m.
This past Saturday, Middlebury took an 11-6 lead on a three from Dylan Sinnickson at the 16:14 mark of the first half. But UMFK scored the next six points, taking a 12-11 advantage on a bucket from Marquis Glenn with 13:43 remaining on the way to a 35-28 halftime lead.
The Bengals extended their lead to 42-33 with 15:41 remaining. Middlebury scored 11 of the game’s next 13 points to tie the game at 44-44. Sinnickson scored six points during the spurt, and Hunter Merryman bookended the run with a two and a three.
UMFK answered with a big surge of its own, taking a 58-46 lead with 5:30 remaining after a 14-2 run. The Panthers came within four, 62-58, with 2:53 left on a three from Sinnickson. But the Bengals scored the next seven points to seal the win.
The Panthers went just seven for 27 from behind the arc and shot .351 from the floor overall. UMFK ended the game connecting on five of 13 threes, 14 of 21 from the line, and hitting 44.8 percent of their shots from the floor. Middlebury held a 50-38 rebounding advantage.
Sinnickson finished with his 10th double-double of the season with 20 points and 12 boards, while Merryman earned his third with 15 points and a dozen rebounds. Dean Brierley scored and Matt Daley added eight, while Jake Brown dished out 10 assists.
The Bengals’ Joe McCloskey led all scorers with 20 points, while Glenn recorded 19 points and 17 rebounds.