Men’s team defeats NHTI, prepares for playoffs
February 12, 2014
AUGUSTA, Maine – The University of Maine at Augusta men's basketball team finished the regular season in style Wednesday night, defeating New Hampshire Technical Institute 89-75 in Yankee Small College Conference action. The win avenges a 121-66 loss in December and gives the Moose plenty of momentum heading into next week's Elite Eight Tournament at Southern Maine Community College. This will be UMA's first trip to the playoffs since the 2010-2011 season.
Head coach Jim Ford's team brought a balanced attack to Wednesday's game, as all five starters scored in double-digits, with three players netting over 20 points. Once again, the Moose were led by junior Brandon Rogers (Turlock, Ca.) who turned in a game-high 24 points and 16 rebounds. Fellow junior Jesse Smith scored 21 points while dishing out seven assists, and sophomore Keith Chesley scored 21 points.
The difference in this game came at the free throw line, as UMA continually challenged the Lynx defense, going 25-32 from the charity stripe to 7-11 for NHTI. Chesley was a perfect 10-10 on the night.
In a game that included nine ties and six lead changes, the Moose only ever trailed by five, and was down by a point at the half. But UMA opened up the second half with a 26-8 run to open up a 17 point lead with 10:39 remaining in regulation. NHTI closed to within nine, but a pair of free throws by both Chesley and Rogers helped to seal the win.
The YSCC Elite Eight Tournament begins with men's quarter-finals next Friday, February 21. A full schedule will be announced at the conclusion of conference play. For more details, please visit www.yankeeconference.org.