NORTH DARTMOUTH, Mass. – A hard-fought first day of the Hampton Inn Classic, hosted by the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth, saw the Southern Vermont College men's basketball team get edged 74-71 by Bowdoin College Friday evening at the Tripp Center.

SVC overcame a late, four-point deficit in the first half to go up 26-25 at the break, but the Polar Bears outscored the Mountaineers by four in the final 20 minutes to take the victory.

Southern Vermont (0-2) concludes its participation in the Classic Saturday at 5 p.m., taking on Trinity College for its final away game before opening up the home schedule on Tuesday.

Mountaineer junior Daemond Carter (Forestville, Md.) chalked up a career-best 18 points to lead the team, going 6-for-10 from downtown while adding a pair of rebounds to his night. Senior Rayshawn Taylor (Silver Spring, Md.) followed with 16 points and three boards while classmate Nate Goldsmith (Capitol Heights, Md.) had 14 points and a team-high nine rebounds to go with his three assists.

SVC senior starter Davante Jordan (Great Mills, Md.) had 10 points, registering a game-best eight assists in the effort. Sophomore guard Josh Borders (Miami, Fla.) put up eight points, five assists and three rebounds while senior reserve Brandon Casella (Pittsfield, Mass.) had five points and three boards off the bench.

Bowdoin shot at a 56 percent (28-59) clip from the field while holding the Mountaineers to a 26-for-70 (37.1 percent) performance on field goal attempts. Nearly half of SVC's field goals came from behind the arc as Southern Vermont went 12-for-35 (34.3 percent) from three-point range. The Mountaineers had an 11-6 edge in second-chance points and a 24-20 upper hand in points from the paint while each team had 16 points off of turnovers. It would be the Polar Bears' extra five converted free throws, however, that made the difference on the night.

The first five SVC baskets of the tilt came from downtown, Borders hitting a pair while Jordan, Casella and Carter each had one. Still, the Mountaineers trailed 20-15 with 7:34 left in the first as the opening period was a low-scoring affair. Southern Vermont inched closer, a pair of Jordan free throws making it just a 22-21 Bowdoin lead with 3:36 on the clock.

The Polar Bears responded, however, with a trey on the next possession to increase their upper hand. That would be the last Bowdoin score of the half as Borders dropped a pair from the charity stripe before Carter made a swipe-and-shoot, knocking down another three to put SVC on top 26-25. The final 1:37 of the half would go scoreless, sending the Mountaineers into the locker room with the edge.

The threes continued for Southern Vermont once play got back underway—two from Carter sandwiching one by Jordan to give SVC its biggest lead of the night (35-25). The Polar Bears chipped away, however, going on a 13-6 run to get back within three. Carter put home his fifth three-pointer of the night to give the Mountaineers a four-point upper hand, but Bowdoin responded with eight unanswered to take the lead at 52-48.

Carter's sixth triple started a 6-0 Southern Vermont spurt that put SVC back on top, only to see the Polar Bears answer with six-straight of their own to reclaim the lead at 60-56. A Taylor three tied things at 61-61 with 4:40 left to go, and the back-and-forth continued down the stretch. Bowdoin was able to convert on its trips to the line, hitting four in-a-row to go in front 71-67.

A missed Bowdoin freebie on the backend of a double bonus allowed Taylor to make a layup with 12 seconds on the clock, but the Polar Bears were able to connect on their next two free throws as SVC was forced to foul. Jordan put up a desperation three at the buzzer in an attempt to send the game to overtime, but it would be off the mark for Bowdoin to celebrate its win.

– #LetsGoSVC –