FARMINGTON, Maine – University of Maine at Farmington junior Andrew Dickey (Cape Elizabeth, Maine/Cape Elizabeth) scored a career high 33 points, 11 of them in overtime, to lead the Beavers to a 102-94 win over Castleton State College, in a North Atlantic Conference men's basketball clash Saturday afternoon at Dearborn Gym.
The win was the eighth straight for UMaine-Farmington – the program's longest winning streak since taking 10 in a row during the 1999-2000 campaign – and was the Beavers' first 100-point game since a 105-99 victory over the University of New England on Dec. 9, 2002, in Biddeford.
Dickey turned in a 7-of-14 shooting performance from the field, 4-of-8 from 3-point range, and was 15-of-16 at the free-throw line.
Junior Ben Johnson (Manchester, Maine/Maranacook) posted his 11th double-double of the season with 27 points behind a 9-of-16 shooting performance, to go with 10 rebounds. Uriah Forest-Bulley (Turner Falls, Mass./Turner Falls) netted a career high 18 points, while Yusuf Iman (Auburn, Maine/Edward Little) finished with 14 along with nine rebounds and five assists.
Castleton State also had four players in double digits, led by Mark Comstock's 22 points on a 9-of-10 effort from the floor. Rob Collutti and Logan White each logged 17 points, while Chris Barletta finished the day with 14 points.
Dammy Mustapha had a game-high 11 rebounds to accompany his nine points, including one 3-pointer – a trey with 41 seconds left in regulation to knot the game at 85-85. The Beavers had led 85-81 with 1:57 left following a Dickey trey, but White hit the first of two foul shots at the 1:12 mark to cut the margin to three and set the table for Mustapha.
In the extra session, Dickey opened up with another 3-pointers, but White and Mustapha answered to give Castleton the lead, 89-88, with 3:37 to play. UMaine-Farmington regained the lead on a pair of Dickey free throws 19 seconds later, and held the lead the rest of the way.
The Beavers went 7-of-8 at the foul line over the final minute of OT to preserve the win.
Castleton actually held a 49-46 lead at halftime after Collutti hit five 3-pointers in the opening frame. UMaine-Farmington rallied with a 7-0 run early in the second half, capped by two Dickey free throws to give the Beavers a 60-55 lead with 16:24 to play. UMF's led by as many as eight points twice during the second half, but a 14-2 Castleton run lasting nearly five minutes put the Spartans back in front, 78-74, with 7:16 showing on the clock.
Forest-Bulley reeled Castleton back to within two points with a pair of free throws at the 5:13 mark. From there, the two teams traded the lead once and were tied twice before Mustapha's game-tying trey to force overtime.
UMaine-Farmington heads to Standish, Maine, on Wednesday, Jan. 30, to square off with St. Joseph's College of Maine. Castleton State returns to the hardwood on Friday, Feb. 1, when it hosts Maine Maritime.
-30-