NASHUA, N.H. – Three players reaching double digits in scoring was not enough for the Southern Vermont College men's basketball team as it returned to action Tuesday night for its first game of 2013. The Mountaineers fell at Daniel Webster College in New England Collegiate Conference (NECC) action, 87-72.
The Mountaineers outscored Daniel Webster in the second half, but the 18 point halftime deficit was too much to overcome.
DWC led wire-to-wire, jumping out to as much as a nine-point lead in the opening eight minutes, eventually pushing the advantage to as many as 20 in the first on a Ryan Gauthier (Nashua, N.H.) three just before the break.
The lead stretched to 23 on a David Feinstein (Londonderry, N.H.) jumper three minutes into the second before SVC would start to chip away. Another Gauthier trey made it 62-40 with 12:43 to go but four points from Southern Vermont senior captain Taeshon Johnson (Charlotte, N.C.) and a pair of sophomore captain Travis Severs (Bennington, Vt.) hoops whittled the lead to 13 (62-49) with 11:23 left.
But a John Hickson (Springfield, Mass.) three 11 seconds later and a follow from downtown from junior Dave Schindewolf (Robbinsville, N.J.)pushed the lead back to 19 with 10:30 to go and SVC pulled no closer than 17 down the stretch.
DWC helped its own cause finishing with a 27-4 advantage on points off turnovers and 22-16 scoring in the paint. DWC also managed a 20-8 advantage off the bench.
Johnson led all players with 23 points while Severs was right behind with 22; that tied Severs' career-high as he also posted 22 at Daniel Webster a year ago. Sophomore Tarvaris Jenkins (Chicago, Ill.) recorded a double-double on the night with 13 points and a game-high 17 rebounds. Sophomore Tyler Hess (Southwick, Mass.) finished with a season-high eight points off the bench for the Mountaineers.
Gauthier led DWC with 22 points, and Hickson followed with 18. Schindewolf finished with 15 points and a team-high nine rebounds. Gauthier and Schindewolf each had a game-high six assists for the Eagles.
The Mountaineers (0-11, 0-3 NECC) are right back at in on Thursday as they host Regis College in an 8 p.m. NECC matchup. Daniel Webster (5-6, 1-2 NECC) travels to Wheelock College on Thursday for a 7:30 p.m. conference tip.