NORTH ANDOVER, Mass. – Senior Roy Mabrey (Belmar, N.J.) gave an encore performance that was better than the original. Just three days after scoring a career-high 37 points against Assumption College, Mabrey dropped 29 to lead the Saint Anselm College men's basketball team to an 82-78 victory against Merrimack College on Tuesday evening at Hammel Court.
While it is true that 29 is less than 37, the senior guard was absolutely dazzling against the Warriors as he had his shot working from everywhere on the floor, en route to finishing 10-for-14 from the field, including 6-for-10 from beyond the arc, and 3-for-4 at the line. The six treys match a career high for Mabrey, who also collected four rebounds and handed out two assists in 40 minutes of work.
The Hawks improve to 4-1 on the season, including 2-1 in Northeast-10 play, while the Warriors dip to 2-3, 0-3 NE-10.
Junior Mike McCahey (Clarkstown, N.Y.) netted 16 points (6-16 FG, 3-7 3-FG, 1-4 FT), including nine in the second half, while pulling down five boards. Senior Chris Santo (Cherry Hill, N.J.) added 14 points (5-10 FG, 4-5 FT), a career-best six assists, two rebounds, two blocks and two steals.
JT Strickland led Merrimack with 21 points, while Gelvis Solano recorded 20 points and 10 rebounds.
Five straight points from Mabrey gave the Hawks a 5-0 lead just a minute-and-a-half in, but a 3-pointer from Kyle Howes, followed by back-to-back treys from Troy Hammel, put Merrimack in front, 9-5, just over a minute later.
Saint Anselm would cut it to one and then do the same after Merrimack ran the lead back to five, but the Warriors answered again to push the lead back to six at 18-12 with 14:01 remaining in the opening half. Jumpers from Mabrey and sophomore Isaiah Nelsen (No. Andover, Mass.) would then trim the Saint Anselm deficit to two.
With the gap at three, four straight points from Santo would give the Hawks the lead at 22-21 with 9:07 to play. The teams would trade the lead three times before a Mabrey trifecta triggered a 9-0 run that gave the Hawks their largest lead of the half at 34-27 with four minutes to go.
A pair of Strickland layups would pull Merrimack within three just over a minute later, but a three-point play from Santo pushed the lead back to six. Howes followed with consecutive baskets to make it a two-point game, but Mabrey knocked down another triple to give himself 20 points and send the Hawks into the locker room with a 41-36 advantage.
Four straight points from Solano powered a 6-0 run to begin the second half for Merrimack as the Warriors grabbed a 42-41 lead just over two minutes in, but a 3-pointer from McCahey and a pull-up jumper from freshman Taylor Fortin (Tolland, Conn.) put the Hawks back on top, 46-42, with 16:45 remaining.
Solano answered with five more to leapfrog Merrimack back into the lead at 47-46 at the 16:00 mark. The teams then traded the lead a whopping 10 times over the following five minutes before a McCahey free throw knotted the game at 59-all with 11:55 to play.
Travonne Berry-Rogers drilled a 3 to put the Warriors back in front, but baskets from senior Mark Schulze (Townsend, Mass.) and Fortin gave the Hawks the lead again at 63-62 with 9:30 left. After Merrimack had gone back in front, Schulze drained a big 3-pointer to put Saint Anselm up, 66-65, with 8:13 to go.
Solano gave Merrimack the lead one final time with a layup at 7:07, but Mabrey and McCahey bookended an 8-0 run with treys that put the Hawks up 74-67 with 2:45 to play. The lead would grow to a game-high nine at 82-73 with 36 ticks left, but the Hawks would miss their final five free throws and the Warriors scored the final five points of the contest to cut the final margin to four.
Schulze chipped in nine points (2-2 FG, 1-1 3-FG, 4-6 FT), four rebounds and four steals in 17 minutes, while sophomore Harrison Taggart (Cuttingsville, Vt.) registered five points (2-7 FG, 1-4 3-FG), nine boards, six assists and three steals. Fortin kicked in five points (2-6 FG, 1-2 3-FG) and two helpers.
Saint Anselm narrowly outshot Merrimack, 45.3 percent (29-64) to 44.9 percent (31-69), but was much better from deep, 42.3 percent (11-26) to 29.2 percent (7-24). The Warriors hit from a better percentage at the line (75-52), but the Hawks drained more free throws (13-9). Merrimack also controlled the paint (40-22) and backboard (46-36), while Saint Anselm, which turned it over 12 times, flipped 17 Warrior miscues into a 20-9 gap in points off turnovers.
Howes posted 14 points and 11 boards for Merrimack, while Hammel added 17.
The Hawks return to action Wednesday, Dec. 3 at 7:30 p.m. when they take on Saint Michael's College. The next home game for the Hawks is Saturday, Dec. 6 at 3:30 p.m. when they play host to Franklin Pierce University at Stoutenburgh Gymnasium. Stay up-to-date with the latest news, including game previews and recaps, directly from the Saint Anselm College athletic department by liking us on Facebook and following us on Twitter @STAHawks.
