CHICOPEE, Mass. – The ninth-seeded Mitchell College men's basketball team rallied from a 12-point deficit with just over three minutes remaining on Monday night to defeat eighth-seeded Elms College, 74-72, in the Play-In Round of the Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) Men's Basketball Championship Tournament at Picknelly Arena.
On the heels of earning their first birth in the GNAC Men's Basketball Championship Tournament, Mitchell (15-11) will be playing in the Quarterfinals for the first time ever when they travel to face top-seeded Saint Joseph's College (ME) on Tuesday, February 25, with tip-off scheduled for 7:30 pm. The Mariners and Monks squared off once during the regular season, with SJC earning a decisive 98-74 victory on Saturday, February 15, at the Yarnall Athletic Center.
The Monks will enter Tuesday's Quarterfinal Round with an overall record of 21-4, having gone 13-1 against GNAC opponents en route to earning the top seed in the tournament.
Mitchell senior Jaylyn Clardy (Pensacola, Fla.) led all scorers with 22 points, while fellow senior Wilton Causey (Worcester, Mass.) finished with 15 points on 7-10 shooting, to go along with seven rebounds, two steals, and a block. Junior Brandon Lee (Stockton, Cali.) added eight points, 10 boards, and a pair of steals.
After the two teams entered halftime with the score knotted up at 32-32, Mitchell stole the momentum to begin the second half, pulling ahead by five on a layup by Causey with 16:27 on the clock. The Blazers then snatched away that momentum, going on a 24-9 run to take a 10-point lead, 61-51, with just under 10 minutes remaining.
Elms held steady and maintained an advantage that consistently remained in double-figures, going up by 13 at the 4:16 mark after a layup by Aden Goffe. Brandon Lee then converted a layup, drew a foul, and made the free throw, but another layup by Goffe pushed the Blazer lead back to 12 with just over three minutes on the clock. After a pair of free throws by junior Walker Baillargeon (Norwich, Conn.) made it a 10-point game once again, the Mariners went on an 11-0 run in the waning moments, taking the lead for good when Lee pulled down an offensive rebound and put back a tip-in off a missed layup by Jaylyn Clardy. A free-throw by Causey sealed the game for the Mariners, who shot 44.6% from the floor and forced 10 turnovers by Elms.
Despite narrowly losing the rebounding battle, 40-34, Mitchell was able to find their footing down low, outscoring the Blazers 44-36 in the paint.
Goffe paced the Blazers, finishing with 17 points, five rebounds, and five assists. Edgardo Jacob Cancel added 13 points off the bench in the loss, while Adam Sarlan netted seven points and racked up a game-high 14 rebounds.
The Blazers, who were also playing the program's first game in the GNAC Men's Basketball Championship Tournament, conclude their season with a 6-20 overall record.