Box Score LYNDONVILLE, Vt. --- Thomas College ran its winning streak to five games with an 80-71 North Atlantic Conference (NAC) men's basketball win at Lyndon State on Saturday afternoon.
Thomas (11-8, 7-5 NAC) controlled the game on the boards, winning the rebounding battle by a 48-31 margin. The Terriers were also 21-of-25 at the free throw line compared to just 10-of-15 for the Hornets (7-11, 5-7 NAC).
Senior Levi Barnes (Skowhegan, Maine / Skowhegan) led four Terriers in double figures with 21 points while sophomore Carlos Gonzalez (Kennebunk, Maine / Lewiston) and senior Mike Akanji (Lincoln, R.I. / Lincoln) each posted double-doubles. Gonzalez posted 17 points and 11 rebounds, while Akanji had 13 points and a game-high 12 boards. Junior Tyheem Simon (Far Rockaway, N.Y. / Lawrence) added 12 points off the bench.
Lyndon grabbed the early 4-0 lead on back-to-back jumpers from Shaun Hill, who finished the first half with 19 points on 8-of-12 shooting. Senior Justin Murray (Winslow, Maine / Winslow) responded for Thomas, getting the Terriers on the board with three-pointers on consecutive possessions.
The Hornets built the lead to 23-14 on a Kevin Love layup with 13:17 to play in the half, but the Terriers used a 10-1 to claw their way back into the game. Akanji drained a three-pointer at the 10:25 mark to knot the game at 24-24. Senior Adam Carlsen (Rockport, Maine / Camden Hills) and Simon also added treys, while Gonzalez added a free throw during the stretch.
After a missed jumper on LSC's next possession, Simon made a layup to give Thomas its first lead of the game at 26-24. After Hill and Barnes traded threes to make the score 29-27, Lyndon rattled off seven straight points to take a 34-29 lead.
Two free throws each by Gonzalez and Barnes pulled the Terriers within one only to see Eric Vargas drain a three to extend the lead back to four points.
Barnes halved the lead with a layup, but Corey Frost hit a pair of free throws to give LSC a 39-35 lead with 3:30 to play. Gonzalez responded with four straight free throws of his own to knot the score at 39-39. Hill and Akanji traded layups in the final 1:47 to send the teams to the locker room at halftime deadlocked at 41.
Out of the break, Lyndon grabbed a four-point lead on baskets by Kevin Love and Raymond Monroe. Thomas rallied for 10 straight points, including eight from Barnes to lead 51-45. A three-pointer by Hill cut the deficit in half, but Gonzalez put the Terriers back up 53-48 with a dunk after the Hornets vacated the lane on a missed three-pointer by Murray late in the shot clock.
After Frost and Murray traded threes to keep the lead at five points, LSC rattled off five straight points to tie the game at 56 with 10:47 to play.
The teams traded the lead over the next three minutes before an Akanji three-pointer gave Thomas a 63-62 lead - one they would not relinquish. Barnes added a layup to make it a three-point game with 6:46 to play, then put the Terriers on his back with two more hoops after Gonzalez went to the bench with his fourth foul at the 6:20 mark.
The Terriers extended the lead to 75-68 with 2:26 to play on a traditional 3-point play by Simon and an Akanji three-pointer from the corner with a hand in his face. Akanji's triple came on a second chance after Dayne Savage corralled the rebound on his own previous miss to reset the shot clock.
Savage hit three free throws and Akanji two down the stretch to ice the game.
Barnes continues to creep closer to the top five on Thomas' all-time scoring list. With 1,682 career points through Saturday, Barnes would pass both Scott Raymond (1,689 points; 1997-2001) and Steve Busque (1,700 points; 1978-82) into fourth place all-time if he hits his 19.3 point-per-game average against Castleton next Friday.
The Terriers return to the court at 7:30 p.m. on Friday, February 5 for a key NAC matchup with the Spartans at Larry Mahaney Gymnasium in Waterville.
