Pinsonault leads AMCATS past Lions in overtime victory
PAXTON, Mass. (02.03.11) – Sophomore Anthony Click (Springfield, Mass.) led the way with 30 points, 12 rebounds, and seven assists as the Anna Maria College men's basketball team fought back from a three-point halftime deficit to defeat Nichols College, 89-84, at The Fuller Activities Center on Thursday night. With the win, the AMCATS have now won five in a row and 10 of their last 11 contests to move into sole position of first place in the conference, improving to 13-7 overall and 7-1 in TCCC-play. The loss drops the Bison to 5-14 on the season and 2-6 in the conference.
Click added three blocks and two steals to go along with his near triple-double, shooting 10-for-15 from the floor, 2-for-2 from downtown, and 8-of-11 from the line. Senior Junior De La Hoz (Lawrence, Mass.) and Chris Pinsonault (Marlboro, Mass.) poured in 19 points apiece, while fellow senior Derek Johnson (Worcester, Mass.) led all players with 14 boards.
The Bison were led by sophomore Justin Kuntz's (Wallingford, Conn.) game-high 34 points on 13-of-22 shooting from the floor, including five three-pointers. Freshman Ryan Sheehan (North Attleboro, Mass.) added 21 points of his own, draining 5-of-9 from beyond the arc, while junior Michael Salis (Nashua, N.H.) chipped in with 12 points, eight rebounds, and six assists while hitting all 10 of his free throw attempts.
The contest was a back-and-forth battle from the start, featuring 14 lead changes and six ties.
After both teams battled to a 7-7 tie through the opening three minutes of play, the Bison went on a 12-4 run, sparked by consecutive layups from sophomore Kyle Mascilak (Sparta, N.J.) and a pair of threes from Sheehan, to open up an eight-point lead.
Undeterred, the AMCATS responded by running-off 11 straight points to grab a 22-19 advantage with 8:41 remaining in the half.
With the AMCATS still leading by three and just 3:28 remaining in the period, the Bison received two treys from Kuntz and a jumper from Mascilak to take a 43-40 advantage into the break.
Despite trailing Anna Maria 22-8 in points in the paint, the Bison used a 12-4 advantage in points off of turnovers during the half to build their lead.
The second half was as closely contested as the first, and after the opening ten minutes of the period the Bison led by four at 62-58.
The AMCATS answered with a rim-rattling dunk from Johnson and a go-ahead three from De La Hoz to regain the lead, 63-62.
Still leading by one, the AMCATS used a three-pointer from freshman Joseph Barillo (Dania Beach, Fla.) and two free throws by Click to open up their largest lead of the game thus far at 75-69.
The Bison never surrendered, fighting back to within two points with less than four minutes to play, before Click responded with an old-fashioned three-point play to put the AMCATS back up by five.
The AMCATS led by seven with just 1:28 remaining in the contest when the Bison rallied for one last charge. After a three by freshman Sam Horning (Falmouth, Maine) and a layup by Justin Aldrich (Douglas, Mass.), Nichols was back within three with just 12 seconds on the clock.
The AMCATS then iced the win, as De La Hoz hit two clutch free throws to seal the 89-84 victory.
Both teams continue conference play Saturday, with the Bison hosting Gordon at 2:00 pm, and the AMCATS hitting the road to battle Wentworth at 3:00 pm.
