Bangor, ME – In their first meeting earlier this season, Husson men's basketball beat the Castleton Spartans in the last second of the game. With both teams sitting on just one conference loss heading into their second meeting tonight, a much-anticipated battle ensued on the court. Husson (15-2, 9-1 NAC) came out victorious again, beating Castleton (11-7, 9-2 NAC) by a score of 69-64.

The first half was a back-and-forth game, with Husson holding the slight edge at 36-32 heading into the locker room. Castleton shot 40 percent from the field in the first half to Husson's 37.9 percent. Aaron Willis (New York, NY) led the Eagles with a team-high seven points, and Mike Gonzales (Fort Washington, MD) and Eli Itkin (Providence, RI) both added six apiece. Castleton's Troy Davine (Rutland, VT) scored nine points in the opening half, and Casey McGraw (Delmar, NY) added seven. Chad Copeland (Plainfield, VT) had five rebounds, all on the defensive end, for the Spartans.

The second half was as close and physical as the first. The teams remained within single digits of one another, with Husson retaining the lead. Husson pulled away a bit at 52-44 and gained some momentum again at 54-48 off a big three-pointer from Donte Cottonham (Silver Spring, MD) as the shot clock expired. The Eagles kept their lead throughout the entire half, but the Spartans held on and kept it close.

Castleton got within two with just over four minutes remaining at 61-59, but a big three from Phil Leighton (Naples, ME) extended the lead to 64-59 in favor of the home team. Some stellar play from Gonzales resulting in a field goal put the Eagles at 66-61 with 30 seconds left, but Castleton immediately responded with a Davine three-pointer that brought the Spartans within two with 22 seconds remaining. Wood tipped a critical steal for the Eagles that brought Trevon Butler (Waterbury, CT) to the line, and his free throws brought the team to 69-64, where they closed out the victory.

Coach Warren Caruso said, "That was a good conference win for us, especially coming off last week. Our guys responded well, and I thought our leadership was great all week."

For Husson, Itkin finished the night with 12 points and Willis scored 10. Butler led the team with seven rebounds and Leighton and Dan Fleming (Fairfield, ME) added 5 each. Wood dished off a game-high seven assists.

Davine was the high-scorer for the game, putting up 18 points. Logan White (Hartford, VT) was also in the double digits for the Spartans with 12 points. Copeland grabbed a game-high 11 rebounds.

Castleton will travel to Maine Maritime for a 3 PM NAC game on Saturday. Husson will host Green Mountain College at 3 PM, and the game will be broadcast locally on WFVX FOX 22 and streamed online via www.hussoneagles.com.