Men and Women Both Fall at NHTI

Concord, NH - In two battles of YSCC Western Division #1 vs #2, the Lynx of NHTI were able to come out on top of both the Knights and Lady Knights of Vermont Tech. In this famililar fierce rivalary, NHTI defended their home court, defeating the Lady Knights 66-49 and the Knights 84-76.

In the first contest of the evening, the #2 seeded Lady Knights attempted to enact a little revenge on the #1 seeded Lynx. NHTI had defeated VTC earlier in the season, although that was several months ago as it occurred during the first semester just before winter break. The YSCC Tournament seedings already locked in, with NHTI two games up on VTC, this game was just for pride and to ready each team for the impending playoffs.

From the start, NHTI was ready to play, using an efficient offense to slice through the Lady Knights. They also employed some solid man defense to stop the Knights, not allowing a score until five minutes into the contest. Thanks to some good defense from VTC, however, the score at that point was only 6-2 in favor of the home team.

The turning point of the game was definitely when, with 1:34 to go before halftime, Lady Knight Forward Paige Wells (So./Orleans, VT) crumbled to the ground with an apparent ankle injury. At the time, NHTI did not have an answer for Wells, as she was leading all scorers with 13 points and had come down with 4 rebounds. Her mere defensive presence inside can also not be discounted, as the Lynx were made to rely on outside shots to maintain their advantage. She was helped off the court and did not return to the game. Kelly Vellek (Sr./Burlington, VT) picked up her teammates' spirits and hit a jumper with seconds remaining in the period to make the lead just 6 for the Lynx, 37-31 going into the halftime break.

The second half was a struggle for the Lady Knights, as they had to figure out how both to score and defend in the paint without their best post player. After a slow start to the period, they did an admirable job staying within striking distance by employing different offensive and defensive techniques. NHTI abandoned their man defense in favor of a 3-2 zone, which was just another things for which to adjust to for the Knights.

In the end, the home team prevailed 66-49. Vellek led the Knights with 17 points, while Ama Baker (Jr./Fitchburg, MA) garnered 9 points, 10 rebounds, 7 steals and 5 assists.

NHTI was led by Jordan Phinney with 20, followed by Caroline Head and Allura LeBlance with 10. Kelly Collings led the team with 9 rebounds.

The second game of the evening was the marquee match-up, as the USCAA #1 NHTI hosted the #8 Knights. Again, like the women's contest, the YSCC Tournament seedings were not in question as they could not be changed not matter the result of the game.

Vermont Tech started strong, with Senior Alex Tyrrell (Sydeny, Australia) scoring the first basket seconds into the game. NHTI then scored 6 straight, with Terry Williams hitting two jumpers and Senior Besfort Syla connecting on one of his own.

The game was back and forth for the first five minutes. Then Vermont Tech went on a 8-0 run to take a 18-10 lead. The run was keyed by Freshman Sam Marler (Sydney, Australia) who started it off by hitting a 3, and then continued by Brandon Matano (Jr./Honolulu, HI) coming off the bench and scoring a quick 5 points.

Vermont Tech held their advantage the rest of the half, although NHTI chipped away at it little by little. The Lynx showed why they are the #1 team in the nation, by not panicking and by sticking to their pre-determined game plan. The Knights did an amazing job on the offensive end of the court, putting up 44 points in the period to lead by 3, 44-41.

At the break, NHTI was led in scoring by Ahntwan Harris who had 10, while Matano led all scorers with 13.

The second half saw Vermont Tech again extend their lead to 6, 50-44, on two free throws from Josh Lindsey (Sr./Palm Bay, FL) at 16:41. NHTI then scored 4 straight on two free throws from Harris followed by a Williams jumper. Two minutes later, following a 3 by Matano that made the score 56-49 in favor of the Knights, NHTI went on a 13-0 run that lasted 7 crucial minutes. Syla scored 6 in the run for the Lynx to give them the lead for the first time since the opening minutes of the game, 62-56.

From there the Knights were playing catch-up, finally tying up the game at 67 with 4 miutes remaining on a Matano 3. The Lynx, however, answered immediately with a 12-0 run to make the score 80-67 with little time remaining and put the game out of reach. The final was 84-76.

Harris of NHTI led all scorers with 23, while the Knights' Matano had 21. Williams of NHTI scored 20.

Marler of VTC had a complete stat sheet, contributing 11 points, 12 rebounds and 7 assists. Tyrrell and fellow senior Lindsey playing in their final regular season contests had, respectively, 15 points, 7 rebounds, 6 assists and 11 points. 9 rebounds.

Both of the Knights' squads have a few days off before traveling to Auburn, Maine for the YSCC Elite Eight Basketball Tournament. The tournament for the ladies begins Friday at 5pm where they will face Southern Maine CC. The men start their tournament run on Saturday at 7pm, and take on the host school Central Maine CC.