Middlebury men’s hoop defeates Williams, Lyndon
MIDDLEBURY — The Middlebury College men’s basketball team won two recent games, most importantly a home NESCAC win over Williams on Sunday.
The Panthers, winners of four straight, are 11-7 overall and 4-1 in league play, a record good enough for second place in NESCAC. They next play at Hamilton on Saturday afternoon.
On this past Sunday, Middlebury closed the game with an 8-2 run over the final 3:06 to defeat visiting Williams, 75-69. With the victory, the Panthers snapped a five-game losing skid to the Ephs in the 108th meeting between the two programs.
Williams (12-6, 3-3) led by as many as seven in the first half and took a 41-36 edge into the locker room.
The Ephs held between a five- and eight-point lead for the opening seven minutes of the second half and led by 49-42 at 13:07. Middlebury then went on a 12-0 run for a 54-49 lead with 8:45 left. Adisa Majors scored six points during the surge on two transition layups and a pair of free throws.
The Ephs regained a 58-57 lead with a 9-3 run, capped off via a Daniel Aronowitz three-pointer at 6:31. The game saw five ties over the next 3:25, with a layup by Eph Kyle Scadlock knotting the score at 67-67. On the next Middlebury possession, Matt St. Amour gave the hosts the lead for good with a three-pointer from the right wing.
Williams made it 70-69 on two Bobby Casey free throws at 1:59, but a short baseline jumper by Majors made it 72-69. Both teams came up empty on their next possessions, and then Middlebury got the ball back on a steal by Majors with 53 seconds left.
St. Amour missed a jumper, but Majors grabbed the offensive rebound with 29 seconds left, forcing the Ephs to foul Jack Daly. He hit one free throw, after which Williams missed a layup and Majors sealed the win with two free throws.
St. Amour led the Panthers with 20 points, including five-for-eight from three-point range, to go along with four rebounds and three assists. Matt Daley added 14 points and seven rebounds, while Majors came off the bench to contribute 10 points, all in the second half, along with four rebounds and two blocked shots.
Zach Baines chipped in with nine points and six rebounds, while Daly had eight points and a game-best eight assists.
Aronowitz scored 20 points and pulled down 11 rebounds. Cole Teal and Scadlock each scored 16 points for the Ephs.
On Tuesday, the Panthers pulled away late from host Lyndon (6-10) in an 85-74 victory. Middlebury led at the half by just 37-35, and the game was tied three times before the Panthers took the lead for good at 48-46 on two Majors free throws. Middlebury then stretched the lead to as many as 12 before settling for the 11-point victory.
St. Amour topped all scorers with 23 points and added six assists, while Baines netted a career-high 20 on nine-for-10 shooting from the floor. Daley added 12 points and six rebounds off the bench, and Majors chipped in eight points. Daly added seven points and a team-high seven rebounds, and Brown had four points, five assists, five steals and six rebounds.
Raymond Monroe paced with Hornets with 17 points. Lyndon connected on 53.6 percent of their attempts from the floor, including 11 of 16 shots from behind the three-point arc. Middlebury was able to overcome Lyndon’s shooting by committing a season-low six turnovers and forcing the Hornets into 14.