NEW LONDON, Conn. – The Connecticut College men's basketball team got back on the winning track with an 82-68 victory over Mitchell College on Saturday afternoon at Luce Field House.
Conn logged season highs in points and shooting percentage (.574) en route to snapping Mitchell's eight-game win streak. The Camels (8-2 overall) led from start to finish and had five players score in double figures.
Andrew Hartel (Cape Elizabeth, Maine) came off the bench to net a team- and season-high 19 points on 9-for-10 shooting and added five rebounds and four assists. Cam Schainfeld (Newton, Mass.) chipped in 15 points and six assists while David Murray (Jackson Heights, N.Y.) finished with 14 points and five boards. Elias Espinosa (Ridgefield Park, N.J.) and Jarron Flynn (Roslindale, Mass.) contributed 11 and 10 points, respectively.
Mitchell (8-2 overall) couldn't overcome a slow start and shot just 1-for-13 from deep in the contest. Alfonzo Stokes (Bloomfield, Conn.) posted a double-double of 23 points and 10 rebounds to lead all scorers, and Mikey Buscetto (Waterford, Conn.) tacked on 10 points and six assists.
Saturday marked the first time in the local rivalry—which spans 18 all-time meetings since it began in 2005-06—that both teams entered the game with winning records. Each team dropped their season opener but responded with sizable win streaks.
Conn set the tone early, opening the game with 16 unanswered points in the first five minutes. Flynn jump started the Camels with fast break buckets on the first two possessions, and Schainfeld later added six points during the stretch that saw the hosts shoot 8-for-10 from the floor while forcing six turnovers. Mitchell, which called a pair of timeouts to get things sorted, missed on its first seven shot attempts of the game.
By the time a layup by Dontae Pollard (Fort Walton Beach, Fla.) put the Mariners on the scoreboard at the 14:34 mark, the Camels were off and running. Midway through the half a 12-0 Conn run bumped the lead to 22, and later a 10-0 spurt gave the Camels their biggest lead at 49-21 with 1:46 left in the stanza.
Conn shot 63 percent in the first half and led 49-26 at the break. Hartel led all scorers with 13 points at intermission, while Stokes had 11 to pace the Mariners.
The Camels led comfortably in the second half and never let the margin dip below double digits. Late in the game, the Mariners used an 11-0 run to pull within 12 with 4:16 left, but a three-point play by Ben Rice (Hanson, Mass.) was enough to derail any thoughts of a comeback.
Conn College will next host Johnson & Wales University on Monday, December 12 at 8:00 p.m.