Box Score Bangor, ME – Despite trailing for nearly the entire first half, the Husson Eagles emerged victorious in the Semifinal game of the NAC Tournament over Castleton State by a score of 75-73. The capacity crowd was treated to quite a show, as the second semifinal game from the Newman Gymnasium was even closer than the first.
The North Atlantic Conference Player of the Year, Josh Jones (Jefferson, ME) led Husson with 19 points and added 15 rebounds. Daeshawn McMorrin (Naugatuck, CT), Eric Modica (Kittery, ME), and Jay Uhrin (Winterport, ME) were the other Eagles in double figures with 16, 15 and 13 points respectively. Mike Knight (Spring Valley, NY) led the Spartans and all scorers with 22 points on the night, and was one of four Castleton players to break into double digits in the scoring column. Mark Comstock (Rutland, VT) finished with a double-double with 11 points and 10 rebounds, while Kevin Eisenberg (Moultonborough, NH) and Jared Paul (Tampa, FL) each made 3 three pointers for14 and 13 points respectively.
Castleton led for much of the first half, and by many as 9 points over the host Eagles. Mike Knight led all scorers with 15 points, and fellow Spartan Kevin Eisenberg joined him in double figures with 10 of his own. Jay Uhrin and Eric Modica led the Eagles with 9 points apiece, while Josh Jones had 8 points and 9 rebound in the first half.
The statistics support just how close the game was in the first half, with Castleton shooting only one percent better than the host Eagles who shot 47% from the floor. The Spartans had the edge in three point shooting making 5-11 while Husson made just 3 with as many attempts. Castleton also had a slight lead in rebounds, bringing down 21 to Husson's 20.
Castleton continued to be hot from behind the arc, making their first four attempts from three point land, and the Spartans finished the game 9-19 from deep, good for 47.4%. Castleton shot 51.9% from the field on the night, better than 47.7% for the home team, but the edge in shooting didn't translate to a victory down the stretch.
It was a tightly contested second half, with no team leading by more than 4 points in the frame. Husson was up by four with 2:10 left, but two free throws from Paul, and a Comstock layup tied the game once again with 1:26 to play. Josh Jones split from the line to give the Eagles a one point edge with a minute to play. Husson had the ball and the lead with 32 seconds left, but Comstock picked-off a pass and led the Spartans into transition where Modica made a diving interception to prevent Castleton the opportunity to go back on top.
The top-seeded Eagles will meet the 2nd place Hornets of Lyndon State in the North Atlantic Conference Championship game tomorrow at the Newman Gymnasium of Husson University tomorrow, with tip-off slated for 2:00 pm.
