Karnik Nets 1,000th Point In Close NECC Loss
LEICESTER, Mass. - Senior forward Joe Karnik joined an elite Mountaineer club Saturday as he reached the 1,000 point milestone on the road in an New England Collegiate Conference loss to the Becker College Hawks 83-79. Karnik finished with 17 points and 10 boards for SVC who was led by junior guard Lance Spratling who tallied 34 points and eight rebounds.
The Hawks (5-7, 1-0 NECC) never trailed in the game and had a 41-30 lead at halftime. The Hawks were led byTrey Jacobs who had 11 points in the half. Off the bench Markus Wright had 10 points on 5-of-6 shooting from the field and five rebounds. Terrance Favors and Rajai Leggett each chipped in six points. Spratling led the Mountaineers (4-6, 1-1 NECC) with 14 points. Southern Vermont out rebounded the Hawks 22-18.
Becker added to its lead in the second half building it to 18 points and a 55-37 lead before Southern Vermont went on a 13-3 run to cut the game to 58-50 with twelve minutes to play. Mountaineers' forward Ben Naaktgeboren (12 points) hit a layup with 6:48 on the clock to cut the lead to six points at 69-63. With 12 seconds remaining Spratling hit two free throws to make it an 82-79 game. Becker's Wright went to the line with 10 seconds left and hit one to seal the victory.
Becker's top playmakers were Jacobs who finished with 25 points and five rebounds and Wright who had a double-double on the night with 14 points and 12 rebounds. Junior Leggett also poured in 15 points. Southern Vermont out rebounded the Hawks 44-41.
SVC travels to Wheelock College on Saturday, January 16th, for a 5:00p.m. NECC match-up.
