Hartford, CT - The Northern Vermont University-Lyndon men's basketball team traveled to the University of Hartford for the first of two exhibition games against NCAA Division I opponents this season. The host Hawks used their superior size and athleticism to pick up an 85-43 victory over the Hornets. The game was a countable contest for Hartford, who evened their record at 1-1 on the season.
The Hornets competed well with the Hawks in the early going. After Hartford jumped out to a 4-0 lead, Brett Roy (Newport, VT) got Lyndon on the board when he conneted from behind the arc. After Hartford's Briggs McClain and Lyndon's Mondwell Bukle (Pyeongtaek, South Korea) traded baskets, a Bukle three-pointer gave Lyndon its first lead at 8-6. Another McClain basket tied things, Jared Kimbrough's dunk gave Hartford back the lead with 14:18 to go in the opening half. After two more Hartford baskets, Antonio Carlisle's (St. Johnsbury, VT) driving layup would pull Lyndon to within 14-10 at the 12:01 mark.
Lyndon would then go scoreless for almost six minutes while Hartford went on a 13-0 run to take control of the contest. A Jayden Macknail (Camillus, NY) three-pointer would break the Hartford run, but the Hawks would close out the opening half on a 17-4 run to take a 44-18 lead into intermission.
A pair of Roy baskets to open the second half brought Lyndon back to within 22 points, but that would be as close as the Hornets would get. Hartford would lead74-43 following a layup from Lyndon's Justin Phillips (Phoenix, AZ) with 4:29 left. the Hawks then closed out the game with an 11-0 run to account for the final score.
McClain led all scorers with 21 points. Braxton Jones chipped in 14 points for the Hawks and Pano Pavlidis also reached double figures with 10 points.Kimbrough pulled down seven rebounds while Pavlidis and Michael Dunne each dished out four assists. Bukle was the only Hornet in double figures, as he finished with 10 points. Jaden Phillips (Temps, AZ) and Tyrese Harris (Fort Bennong, GA) both grabbed five boards and Harris handed out six assists.
The Hornets return to regular season action this weekend when they travel to Northern Vermont University-Johnson for the annual Northern Vermont University Tip-Off Classic. The Hornets will square off against Bryant & Stratton College of Albany in the tournament opener Saturday afternoon at 2:00 pm.
