Men's Basketball

BENNINGTON, Vt. - The Wheelock College men's basketball team didn't win a national championship on Saturday against host Southern Vermont, but you wouldn't have known the difference by the way the Wildcats celebrated following their 80-75 victory.

Standing outside a visitors' locker room that still echoed with raucous cheers a full 10 minutes after the final buzzer, head coach John Preziosa said that the victory - Wheelock's first-ever conference win - was sweet redemption for a team that felt disrespected coming into this season.

"We were picked dead last in the (New England Collegiate Conference) preseason poll, and we didn't feel that we deserved that," Preziosa said. "We tried to play with a little bit of a chip on our shoulder. The guys knew what was at stake."

The conference opener for both teams was largely a nip-and-tuck affair, until Wheelock (3-8) took the lead for good on a jumper by Sherard Robbins (20 points) with 9:39 remaining in the second half. SVC (3-5) closed to within a single possession on a layup by Jaret Falkowitz (a team-high 21 points) with 33 seconds left, but the Wildcats shut the door behind seven free throws by Dan Main (a game-high 25 points) within the final minute.

The game featured a marked second-half recovery by the Mountaineers, who spotted Wheelock a nine-point lead (36-27) by halftime after struggling to solve the extended 3-2 zone that the Wildcats switched into early in the game.

"We did the right thing when you have a bad half - you put it behind you and have a decent second half," SVC head coach Mike McDonough said. "We had a pretty good start, then (Wheelock) made a defensive adjustment and we didn't execute against it. It took a little halftime primer to get us attacking that zone like we wanted to."

Brendan Kordana was another highlight for the home team, connecting on five three-pointers on his way to 19 points. The shooting guard buried three of his triples within a 98-second span of the second half, with the final one giving SVC its last lead, 56-54, with 10 minutes remaining in the game.

"With Brendan, it's all in his head - once he makes one (three-pointer), his confidence goes up," SVC point guard Chris Holland said. "If anyone makes a couple of shots in a row, it brings the energy level up for everybody."

Academic eligibility issues have robbed the Mountaineers of two of their go-to scorers, and McDonough admitted that the team is still working to find its identity in key game situations without them.

"We reach a point where guys are looking around the court at each other, and they have to be willing to say, 'it's me,'" McDonough said. "That's a different role for some of these guys."

But along with Kordana and stalwart Joe Karnik (16 points, 15 rebounds), Falkowitz showed the ability to take the offense into his hands for extended stretches. He scored the Mountaineers' final six points to cap a 7-of-11 showing from the floor, and added a game-high five assists.

"Jaret is capable of a lot of things, and he's only going to get stronger and better," McDonough said. "We keep having these 'coming out parties,' and today was his."

The Cambridge, N.Y., tandem of Ben Naaktgeboren and Cam Herrington combined for 16 points and 16 rebounds, but missed 18 field goal attempts between them in a performance than McDonough doesn't expect to see too often. Wheelock's Robbins added 12 rebounds, and slashed to the hoop all too easily on a number of possessions.

"We need to get better positioning on the inside of guys, get our hands up in front of them and not allow (entry) passes so easily," Herrington said. "We know we can play better defense, we just need to work harder."

Luckily, the Mountaineers will have a chance to rebound on Tuesday at home against Mitchell College at 5 p.m. McDonough said that the quick turnaround that often occurs within a basketball schedule makes defeats a bit easier to bear sometimes.

"We won't get to dwell on this one too much," McDonough said. "We'll look at this one (Sunday), then put it away and get ready for Mitchell."

 

Mount Anthony Youth Athletic Association teams Morse Excavating (left) and the Elks (right) took time to pose with President Gross after their halftime game Saturday afternoon at the SVC Field House.