WATERVILLE — After a back and forth first half, the Colby College men’s basketball team started to see the results of its defensive effort. After taking the lead for good late in the first half, the Mules opened the second half with a strong run, pulling away from crosstown rival Thomas College for a 77-61 win.
“I think we just kept bringing our defensive intensity and playing hard. I think that carried over from the first half,” Colby senior forward Patrick Stewart said. “The first five minutes of the game, you give up 16 points, but after that I think the energy was there.”
“Getting our defense going, getting a series of stops, we always talk about that in practice,” Colby senior center Chris Hudnut added.
Ahead 35-32 at the half, Colby (2-1) saw Thomas (2-3) cut the lead to one with a Carlos Gonzalez layup 19 seconds into the second half. However, that was as close as the Terriers would get. The Mules went on a 14-2 run, pushing their lead to 49-36 and out of reach. Thomas committed five turnovers in the four minute stretch that saw Colby push its lead to double digits.
“Defensively, I thought we tightened up in the second half and I was proud of that senior starting group, especially coming off this past weekend where we had some defensive lapses,” Colby coach Damien Strahorn said. “I thought that was their best stretch of defense (this season) and certainly helped us open up the game.”
Colby’s lead was 16 points, 59-43, when the Terriers cut it to 11 with a pair of foul shots by Salim Warsame and a three-point play by Justin Murray, but Thomas was never able to get any closer.
“We played hard for about 30 minutes for that game and we were right in it. We kind of broke apart and got away from what was working for us,” Thomas coach Geoff Hensley said.
What worked in the first half for the Terriers was attacking the basket. Early on, Thomas was able to create offense from the perimeter, with its guards penetrating the lane and taking layups, or kicking the ball out for open threes. The Terriers led by as many as four points in the first half.
“We were just being very aggressive with the basketball. They put their bigs on our guards and our guards were able to create stuff off the dribble,” Hensley said. “In the second half, our legs started going, and when the stamina goes out the window things start falling apart.”
Added Strahorn: “The thing you love when you watch film on (Thomas) is they just compete. I think coach Hensley has done a nice job with the new guys he’s brought in. I thought in the first half, Chris kind of got caught floating out to the perimeter and we weren’t quite able to establish that low block position that we want to and can be so effective with. They competed defensively to not allow that.”
Ryan Jann led Colby with 17 points. Stewart added 12 points and nine rebounds, while Hudnut had 10 points and eight boards. Sam Willson added 11 points and seven rebounds for the Mules.
Tyheem Simon led Thomas with 18 points, with 16 coming in the first half. Skowhegan native Levi Barnes scored 13 points for the Terriers.
Travis Lazarczyk — 861-9242
tlazarczyk@centralmaine.com
Twitter: @TLazarczykMTM
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