Bates’ James Mortimer drives to the basket and floats one in between UNE’s Ryan Matthews, left and Jackson McCoy during the first half of Sunday night’s basketball game in Lewiston. (Russ Dillingham/Sun Journal)
LEWISTON — Bates men’s basketball entered its home-opener with the University of New England averaging just under 60 points per game through the first three games of the season. The Nor’easters entered play averaging exactly 100 points through their first four games.
It wasn’t a case of something having to give when the two teams collided Sunday. The Bobcats conceded they would have to ratchet their tempo up several notches to keep up with UNE’s Grinnell College-inspired turbo pace, even playing eight-on-five in practice to prepare.
But matching that high-scoring style doesn’t mean giving up on the defensive end. And Bates buckled down enough defensively to limit UNE to one basket in the final 3:47 to rally to a 107-103 win at Alumni Gymnasium.
Jeff Spellman scored a career-high 38 points and pulled down eight rebounds to lead the Bobcats (3-1), who shattered their previous season-high of 72 points in an overtime win over Maine Maritime despite making just one of 19 3-pointers.
“There are some teams that we play that try to push the pace, but not like that,” said Spellman, a sophomore guard from Boston. “We knew it was going to be like that coming in, but it was a different experience being in it.”
“We just told the guys one possession at a time. Be proactive, not reactive,” Bates coach Jon Furbush said. “Our guys weathered the storm multiple times.”
The fast, frenetic style popularized by Division III Grinnell College in Grinnell, Iowa, maximizes pace, possession and points with full-court pressure, a shoot-at-will directive and mass substitutions, sometimes in intervals lasting one minute or less.
Spellman didn’t seem to mind the exhausting tempo, though, scoring six of Bates’ final nine points, despite playing a game-high 34 minutes.
“I’m a little tired now, but I wanted that win bad,” he said. “It’s a glorified track meet out there. Coach called a timeout and just got us all fired up and told us we had to get some stops.”
“He’s in incredible shape, and he’s one of those kids that when they physically shut down, he mentally gets a little tougher,” Furbush said of Spellman. “A lot of guys shut down from the neck up when they get tired and he just has that extra gear that helps him push through.”
The scoreboard matched the back-and-forth play on the court with 23 lead changes and 13 ties. UNE’s largest lead was eight, which came early in the first half as Bates adjusted to the pace. Bates’ biggest lead was six, which came later in the half.
A jumper by Drew Coveney gave the Nor’easters (1-4) a 101-98 lead with 3:48 left. They would miss their next six shots.
Spellman converted one of those misses into a layup at the other end to pull the Bobcats within one. Tom Coyne then found Brandon Galloway underneath for a layup that put them in front for good with 1:16 remaining.
Coyne made one of two free throws to make it 103-101 with 29.9 seconds to go, After Galloway stripped Gavin Dibble as he tried to drive the lane, Dibble fouled Spellman, who swished both free throws for a four-point lead with 19.4 seconds left.
Coveney ended UNE’s drought with a layup to make it a two-point game with 11 seconds left. But Nick Gilpin found Spellman for a layup on Bates’ press-breaker to ice the game with 7.7 seconds remaining.
“We had our starting five in practice going against eight guys on ‘D,’ and that seemed a little ridiculous at the time but it definitely helped prepare us,” said Spellman, who shot 16-for-25 (o-for-5 from 3). “It feels like we’re all playing against two guys, especially since they’re running two at the ball, there’s always someone open.”
Bates frequently found the open man in the paint or cutting to the hoop, converting 63 percent (41-for-65) of its two-point attempts, which helped it overcome its poor shooting from beyond the arc.
“We said going into the game that 50 twos is more than 33 threes, so we were hoping to get 50 layups and if they made 33 threes, we’d win 100-99,” Furbush said. “I don’t know what the stats were, but I was glad that we didn’t settle. We had some open 3-point shots that were open. We didn’t settle. We got the extra pass for the layup, and that was our goal.”
The Bobcats also controlled the boards, 59-40 (17-9 offensive), and the free-throw line (22-for-34, compared to 17-for-24 for UNE). They also had 28 assists to the Nor’easter’s 16.
Eli Frater added 17 points and James Mortimer 13 for Bates.
Dibble led UNE with 14 points. In all, 18 players saw time on the court for the Nor’easters, including former Winthrop start Jacob Hickey. A freshman, Hickey logged five minutes, missing both of his 3-point shots and collecting one offensive rebound.
Bates’ Eli Frater, left, floats in the air as he drives to the hoop for a basket against UNE’s Sean Walsh during the first half of Sunday night’s game in Lewiston. (Russ Dillingham/Sun Journal)
Bates’ Max Hummel makes a pass to teammate Justin Zukowski, right, as he falls over UNE’s Ryan Beatty to break a full court press during the first half of Sunday night’s game in Lewiston. (Russ Dillingham/Sun Journal)
UNE’s Ryan Matthews attempts to block the shot by Bates’ Brandon Galloway during Sunday night’s game at Bates. (Russ Dillingham/Sun Journal)
Apprentice officials and seasoned veterans sit at the scorers’ table at Sunday night’s men’s basketball game at Bates College in Lewiston. (Russ Dillingham/Sun Journal)
Send questions/comments to the editors.
