FARMINGTON, Maine - The University of Maine at Farmington men's basketball team picked up where it left off after a three-week holiday hiatus, taking down VTSU Lyndon, 94-83 in its return to the court on Monday afternoon.
The Records:
Farmington improved to 10-3 overall with the win and remains unbeaten in North Atlantic Conference (NAC) action. Lyndon dropped to 5-7 overall, and picked up its second conference setback of the season, falling to 3-2.
How it Happened:
The Beavers connected on three of their first four three-point attempts, including a pair from junior forward Charlie Houghton (Dixfield, Maine) in the opening two and a half minutes of play to jump out to an 11-5 lead.
Farmington pushed its lead to as much as 11 in the opening ten minutes of play, thanks in part to a quick six points off the bench from sophomore Kory Donlin (Warren, Maine).
With the Beavers clinging to a 24-13 advantage, the Hornets responded with an 8-0 burst highlighted by a completed and-one from Ty Banks and five quick points that included a three from Donovan Nelson to pull within three with 8:46 left to play in the opening half.
Farmington answered with a 15-4 surge over the next six minutes of action to open up a 14-point lead. First-year forward Tristan Robbins (Caribou, Maine) and Houghton connected on long triples to spark the Beaver run.
Leading 41-31 at halftime, Farmington quickly expanded its lead in the opening minutes of the second half. Sophomore point guard Gabe Michaud (Gorham, Maine) began to have his way on the offensive end of the floor, getting into the lane at will and opening up the offense. Michaud opened the half with consecutive driving layups and capped another 15-4 Farmington run with a third layup that put the Beavers up 56-35 with just over 16 minutes to play in the half. Michaud scored all 11 of his points in the second half and also dished out four assists in the half.
Farmington led by as much as 23 and looked like it was going to coast to a NAC victory. But once again, the Hornets didn't go down without a fight. After being held to just four points in the opening half, conference-leading scorer Wesley McIntyre got things going offensively, scoring 17 points in the second half, while graduate student Gregory Gonyea Jr. scored 17 of his own, including a three in transition with 2:06 left in the game to cut Farmington's lead to just nine.
Farmington executed down the stretch and hit five-of-six from the free throw line to put a halt to the Lyndon comeback attempt and secure the win.
Stats of the Game:
Farmington:
Field Goal Pct: 44.0% (33-for-75)
Three-Point Pct: 29.0% (9-for-31)
Free Throw Pct: 86.4% (19-for-22)
Rebounds (Total, Off-Def): 48 (10-38)
Turnovers: 11
Lyndon:
Field Goal Pct: 38.2% (29-for-76)
Three-Point Pct: 27.3% (6-for-22)
Free Throw Pct: 67.9% (19-for-28)
Rebounds (Total, Off-Def): 42 (12-30)
Turnovers: 11
Leaders - Farmington:
- Sophomore Zach McLaughlin (Hampden, Maine) scored a team-high 24 points while shooting 7-for-21 from the field and 10-of-12 from the free throw line.
- Junior forward Jason Reynolds (Winslow, Maine) picked up his ninth straight double-double, putting up 15 points on 6-of-11 shooting to go along with a game-high 19 rebounds.
- Houghton pitched in with 15 points, hitting three triples and grabbing eight rebounds.
- Michaud finished with 11 points on an efficient 5-of-7 shooting from the field and dished out seven assists.
- Donlin finished with 14 points in 27 minutes off the bench.
Leaders - Lyndon:
- Gonyea Jr. finished with a game-high 26 points, shooting 11-for-22 from the floor and 3-of-6 from beyond the arc. He also added 10 boards to secure the double-double.
- McIntyre finished with 21 points, shooting a perfect 12-for-12 from the free throw line.
- Matt Doyle pitched in with a double-double, pitching in with 10 points and 10 boards.
UP NEXT
The Beavers will put their unbeaten conference record on the line on Tuesday afternoon, playing host to VTSU Johnson at 1:00 PM.
