Posted: Jan 04, 2017

AMCATS Fall to Monks in Overtime Thriller

Anna Maria

(2-9, 2-2)

Saint Joseph's (Me.)

(6-5, 3-1)

Final

Anna Maria (2-9, 2-2)

Saint Joseph's (Me.) (6-5, 3-1)

Game Leaders

Anna Maria

Pts: Kenneth Graham - 14

Reb: Mike Rapoza - 19

Ast: Chris Contento - 6

Saint Joseph's (Me.)

Pts: Ian Mileikis - 18

Reb: Aaron Hall - 7

Ast: Marc Corey - 5

Team Stats

Anna Maria

Saint Joseph's (Me.)

Field Goals

(25-70)

(25-64)

Field Goal %

35.7%

39.1%

Rebounds

Assists

Turnovers

Pts off Turnovers

2nd Chance Pts

Pts in the Paint

Fastbreak Pts

Bench Pts

Full stats

STANDISH, Maine—The Anna Maria College men's basketball team fell to the Monks of Saint Joseph's College of Maine 67-65, in a thrilling Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) overtime contest at the Harold Alfond Center on Wednesday evening.

The loss drops the AMCATS to a 2-9 overall record and 2-2 in GNAC play. The Monks improve to 6-5 overall and 3-1 in the conference.

HOW IT HAPPENED

In a contest featuring 15 tie scores and eight lead changes with neither team owning more than a six-point lead, Saint Joseph's freshman guard Mario Nery (Bronx, N.Y.) lifted the Monks to victory by going 4-4 from the free throw line during the five-minute overtime frame.

St. Joe's held a 53-48 cushion after junior forward Aaron Hall (Haverhill, Mass.) converted a layup with 7:44 remaining in regulation, but the AMCATS knotted the contest with five quick points from senior guard David Jean-Louis (Miramar, Fla.) during the following minute of play. The conference counterparts essentially traded buckets until SJC junior forward Quinn Richardson-Newton (Saco, Maine) hit a jumper, tying the contest at 61-61, with 2:58 left. The two-pointer proved to be the final shot made during regulation, as the Monks and AMCATS combined to go 0-8 from the field the rest of the way.

INSIDE THE NUMBERS

Both teams netted 25 field goals and six three pointers in the contest. It was at the free throw line that the Monks were able to take the victory from the AMCATS as they drained 11 free-throws to the AMCATS nine. The Monks shot 39.1 percent from the field while Anna Maria shot 35.7 percent.

Freshman forward Mike Rapoza (Charlton, Mass.) scored 13 points and pulled down a game-high 19 rebounds with two blocked shots. Junior forward Kenneth Graham (West Haven, Conn.) chipped in with 14 points and five boards while his classmate Liam Pickett (Oxford, Mass.) came off the bench to score 12 points with four rebounds. David Jean-Louis, Tanner Jakola (Leominster, Mass.), and Malik Forouzan (Houston, Texas) netted eight points apiece in the loss.

Monk's sophomore guard Ian Mileikis (Auburn, Maine) led all players with 18 points while shooting 8-14 from the floor. Richardson-Newton tallied 12 points, four boards, two assists, and a pair of steals. Senior guard John Crawley (Fitchburg, Mass.) came off the bench to net nine points with three rebounds and a pair of rejections. Hall added eight points, seven rebounds, three steals, and two blocked shots while Nery contributed seven points, four assists, and two rebounds. Senior guard Andrew Ruffen (Salem, N.H.) netted a pair of three-pointers with four rebounds and an assist off the bench.

WHAT'S NEXT?

Both teams are back in action facing conference foes this Saturday, when Saint Joseph's travels to Emmanuel College for a 1:00 PM contest and Anna Maria hosts Lasell College in a 3:00 PM tip-off.