Box Score WATERVILLE, Maine --- Thomas College wrapped the No. 4 seed and a home quarterfinal game in the upcoming North Atlantic Conference (NAC) Men's Basketball Championship with a 96-78 win over Maine Maritime Academy on Saturday at Larry Mahaney Gymnasium.
Thomas (13-12, 9-9 NAC) jumped on the board quickly as senior Justin Murray (Winslow, Maine / Winslow) hit a jumper off the opening tip and Levi Barnes (Skowhegan, Maine / Skowhegan) forced a turnover on the first possession by Maine Maritime (5-20, 4-14 NAC), coralling the loose ball and finishing the fast break with the first of his three dunks in the first half to give the Terriers a quick 4-0 lead.
The Mariners battled back hitting a layup and a 3-pointer to cut the deficit to just one, but the Terriers responded with nine straight points to build a 10-point lead at the 15:09 mark of the half. Back-to-back buckets by Dylan Price and Brendan Newcomb made it a six-point game. Thomas followed with a 14-7 run to lead 29-16 at the midway mark of the period.
Continuing to attack the basket, Maine Maritime clawed its way back into the game. The Mariners went on a 15-6 run over the next seven minutes to draw within four points at 35-31 as the clock went under three minutes to play. They continued to connect at the free throw line, hitting five of six opportunities in the final 2:11 of the half, but could not convert from the field down the stretch. Thomas extended its lead to 45-36 at halftime behind two layups each from Barnes and freshman Jarrod Leonardi (South Thomaston, Maine / Oceanside) and one free throw apiece from junior Ian King (Westbrook, Maine / Hebron Academy) and senior Mike Akanji (Lincoln, R.I. / Lincoln).
Maine Maritime's Tyler Thayer opened the second half with a jumper to cut the deficit to seven points, but Thomas responded with a 13-2 run to go ahead 58-40 at the 16:35 mark of the second half.
After Barnes scored on a layup to put Thomas ahead 75-56 with 10:05 to play, Tyheem Simon (Far Rockaway, N.Y. / Lawrence) scored the Terriers' next eight points. He outscored Maine Maritime, 8-6, over the next 3:41, capping the stretch with a 3-pointer to give Thomas its largest lead of the game at 83-62. The Mariners rallied for seven straight points to cut the lead to 14 with just 4:08 to play, but the Terriers made five of six free throws down the stretch to put the game away.
The Terriers had five players finish in double-figures, including all four seniors in the starting lineup. Barnes scored a team-high 21 points on 8-of-13 shooting with 19 coming in the first half alone. Fellow seniors Adam Carlsen (Rockport, Maine / Camden Hills) and Murray had 13 points apiece, while Akanji posted a 12-point, 12-rebound double-double with three assists. Simon added 15 points and five rebounds off the bench.
Junior Carlos Gonzalez (Kennebunk, Maine / Lewiston) had seven points and a game-high 15 boards, while King had one point, eight assists and five rebounds. Jarrod Leonardi also chipped in with career-highs in points (six) and rebounds (five).
As he did in the first meeting between the schools in early December, Maine Maritime's Brendan Newcomb collected game-high honors with 32 points. He was 7-of-10 from the field and 14-of-17, including 4-of-6 from behind the arc, and 14-of-17 at the charity stripe. Dylan Price added 12 points and seven rebounds, while Dylan Stevens had 11 points and five rebounds.
The Terriers outrebounded the Mariners, 53-32, in the contest and shot 48.5 percent (32-of-66) from the field compared to Maine Maritime's 38.5 percent (25-of-65). Thomas also finished with 13 3-pointers, just two off the team season-high of 15 set against New England College on January 23.
With the victory, Thomas secured the No. 4 seed in the NAC Championship Tournament and will host fifth-seeded Castleton (9-16, 8-10 NAC) at 5:30 p.m. Tuesday in a quarterfinal game at Larry Mahaney Gymnasium. The winner will face top-seeded Husson (19-6, 15-3 NAC) on Friday evening in Bangor.
