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| Montclair State did its best but couldn't slow down Reeya Patel and Amherst enough to prevent the Mammoths from winning their eighth consecutive game. Photo by Larry Radloff, d3photography.com |
LAS VEGAS -- D3hoops.com Classic women's basketball veteran Amherst came away with a tough win, while free throws loomed large in both men's games on the first day of the annual event.
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The final game of the day had the most drama, as Franklin and Marshall rallied from a 10-point deficit to defeat Dubuque, 66-64. The Spartans led for much of the game, including a 56-46 advantage after Jaylin McCants sank a free throw with nine minutes to play.
Instead of letting the game get away, Franklin and Marshall answered with a three from John Seidman and fought all the way back to take a 62-60 lead on Omar Nichols' three with five minutes to play. Neither team scored much from that point on. Sam Kilburg's layup with four minutes remaining put the Spartans back up by two and the Diplomats made three of their next four free throws to regain the lead. Josh Parra nudged the Diplomats' lead to 66-64 by splitting a pair of free throws and the Spartans missed a potential game-winning three at the buzzer.
Dubuque made its first 20 free throw attempts to set a new D3hoops.com Classic record but missed its final four shots down the stretch. Meanwhile, Franklin and Marshall went 14 for 26 from the foul line, basically matching their season average of 54 percent.
Parra and Nichols scored 16 apiece for Franklin and Marshall (6-3) while McCants led Dubuque (9-3) with 13 points before fouling out.
Matthew Johnson led Concordia-Moorhead to an 80-71 victory over Ramapo in the first men's game of the 12th annual D3hoops.com Classic. After a close first half, the Cobbers used a 9-0 run midway through the second half to take a double-digit lead on the Roadrunners. Ramapo pulled with four with less than three minutes to play before Johnson answered with a three and a layup for the Cobbers to put the game out of reach.
Johnson scored 26 points and went 11-for-13 from the foul line for Concordia-Moorhead (5-5), which took 27 free throws. Jordan Myers scored 11 for Ramapo (5-6) but the Roadrunners commited 27 personal fouls plus three technicals.
In women’s action, No. 6 Amherst kept its perfect record intact with a 61-51 victory over Montclair State. Montclair State hung tough with the Mammoths and pulled even at 44 midway through the fourth quarter when Nickie Carter hit a driving layup for the Red Hawks. Amherst answered with a 10-0 run when Mammoths guard AnLing Vera hit a three, her backcourt teammate Reeya Patel drove to the rim for a layup, and then Vera found Patel for another three. Maya Cwalina capped the game-deciding run with a layup that put Amherst in front 54-44.
Patel and Vera combined for 30 points in 70 minutes of action for Amherst (8-0). Nickie Carter scored 21 points on 8-for-30 shooting for the Red Hawks (5-5).
The Classic tipped off with SUNY Oneonta winning its fifth straight game as the Red Dragons pulled away from Southern Maine, 55-51. SUNY Oneonta took the lead in the third quarter with a 6-0 run keyed by Clara Culeton whose three-point play gave the Red Dragons a 40-34 advantage midway through period. Southern Maine pulled within two, 51-49, on Amy Fleming’s layup with 64 seconds left in the game. On the Red Dragons’ next possession, Culeton received the pass on the block and stepped around the Southern Maine defender for a layup that put the Red Dragons back up by four. After Vanessa Vaughan scored for Southern Maine, SUNY Oneonta guard Meg Nardelli put the game away with two free throws with four seconds left.
Culeton and Nardelli finished with 11 points each for SUNY Oneonta (8-3) while Vaughan scored 20 for Southern Maine (2-6).
In the final women’s game of Day 1, Briana Neary poured in 25 points and grabbed nine rebounds to help Salve Regina fend off Wellesley, 57-49. The Seahawks outscored the Blue 30-18 in the paint and had a 15-5 advantage in second chance points. Ashley Rourke added 13 points for the Seahawks (7-2), who play Concordia-Moorhead on Friday afternoon. Wellesley (5-6) used 11 players and 10 of them scored, led by Anna Greenthal who scored eight.