LEWISTON, Maine -- Senior captain Nick Lynch scored a game-high 20 points and the Bates men's basketball team rolled to a 76-59 win over Connecticut College Saturday afternoon on Senior Day at Alumni Gymnasium.
Lynch (Westford, Mass.) followed up his career-high 26 points Friday against Wesleyan with another strong performance against the Camels (6-13, 0-7 NESCAC) on Saturday. He hit 9-14 shots from the floor, grabbed three rebounds, blocked a shot and recorded three steals. Junior Jeff Spellman (Boston, Mass.) scored 18 points on 7-11 shooting and dished out a game-high eight assists. Junior Kody Greenhalgh (West Warwick, R.I.) continued his strong season with 16 points on 5-10 shooting. Greenhalgh drilled four three-pointers on seven attempts. He also tallied five assists.
David Labossiere and Jack Zimmerman paced the Camels with 15 points each. Phil Leotsakos added 13 points and Dan Draffan recorded a double-double with 10 points and a game-high 11 rebounds.
The Bobcats (6-13, 3-4 NESCAC) dominated the turnover battle, forcing the Camels to turn the ball over 20 times while only turning it over six times themselves. Bates converted 25 points off turnovers and the Camels did not score any points the few times Bates turned it over. The Bobcats finished the game with 11 steals.
Bates got off to a fast start, outscoring the Camels 36-22 in the first half. The game stood tied at 10 after a Leotsakos layup with 9:30 left in the first half. Then Bates went on a 6-0 run and never surrendered the lead again. A Labossiere three with 5:22 left in the half cut the Bates lead to 24-20. But the Bobcats quickly answered with a 10-0 run to go up by 14 with 2:01 remaining on a pair of Spellman free throws.
Connecticut College rallied in the second half, cutting the Bates lead to 47-44 with 11:59 left. The Bobcats responded with an 8-0 run , taking a 55-44 lead on a Lynch jumper with nine minutes remaining in the game.
The Camels did not get closer than to within nine points after that as Bates earned its third conference win of the season.
On Senior Day, the Bobcats honored captains Eli Frater (Brooklyn, N.Y), Brandon Galloway (Fort Washington, Md.), Max Hummel (Glastonbury, Conn.) and Lynch. All four started the game, with Hummel tallying eight points and six rebounds. Galloway scored three points, grabbed three rebounds and dished out a pair of assists.
After a winless December, the Bobcats finish January with a record of 4-4. Bates hits the road to start the month of February. The Bobcats visit Hamilton on Friday, Feb. 1 for a 7pm tip. Then they travel to Amherst on Saturday, Feb. 2 for a 3pm. tip. Bates' next home game is set for Tuesday, Feb. 5 against UMaine-Farmington at 7pm.