CLINTON, N.Y. -- The Bates men's basketball team spread the wealth on offense in a 67-62 win over Hamilton Friday night.
The road victory for Bates (9-6, 2-1 NESCAC) wasn't easy as the Continentals (7-7, 0-3 NESCAC) gave their all for the whole game.
Three players scored in double figures for Bates. Mike Boornazian '16 (Portland, Conn.) and Malcolm Delpeche '17 (Wilmington, Del.) led the way with 12 points each. Marcus Delpeche '17 (Wilmington, Del.) added 10 points of his own while hauling down seven rebounds, tied with Boornazian for the team-high.
Shawn Strickland '18 (Middletown, Conn.) delivered an impressive performance. He tallied eight points with a game-high seven assists. Despite getting into foul trouble, Josh Britten '16 (Yarmouth, Maine) hit two crucial threes in the second half and finished with eight points.
Hamilton crashed the boards in the first half, out-rebounding Bates 26-17. The Continentals tallied 10 offensive boards in the half to keep the game close. Bates did a better job of taking advantage of turnovers in the half, tallying 15 points off turnovers to Hamilton's seven.
Each team led by as many as eight points in the first half, with Bates starting the game off well before the Continentals rallied.
A Quin Leary '17 (Auburn, Maine) three with 10 seconds left in the first half put Bates up by one at the break.
Bates did a much better job on the boards in the second half, limiting Hamilton to only three offensive rebounds.
The Continentals lead 46-43 with 13:43 to go in the game when Jerome Darling '17 (Hartford, Conn.) hit a three to tie the score.
The teams battled back-and-forth and Bates found themselves down 53-52 with 5:44 to go when Britten hit his first three of the night. Boornazian quickly followed with a runner in the lane and Mike Newton '16 (Chapel Hill, N.C.) converted a layup on a fast break to give the Bobcats a 59-53 lead with 4:30 remaining. Hamilton called timeout.
And the Bobcats never trailed again.
The Continentals stuck around but Britten scored the final five points of the night, on a three and two made free throws, to help the Bobcats ice the win.
Winners of five of their last six games, the Bobcats visit Middlebury Saturday to try and earn their third NESCAC win of the season. Tip is set for 3:00 p.m.