STANDISH, MAINE - The USM Huskies(10-10) survived a second half
rally by the Monks (12-6) to earn a 60-54 victory at the Alfond
Center on Wednesday night.
The teams traded baskets for most of the first half with USM going
into the break up by 10, 37-27 after a 7-0 run late in the half.
The Huskies controlled the game for the first five minutes of the
second half, building a 12-point lead.
Two baskets by freshman Mitch Ouellet (Fort Kent, ME) cut the lead
to 8 and sparked the St. Joe's comeback with just over 12 minutes
to play. The Monks stayed within striking distance and closed it to
within 1 on a jumper by junior Marcus Alexander (Niceville, FL) at
7:39. Senior Chad Pulkkinen (Windham, ME) tied the game at 54 with
a shot at 2:16 but the Huskies pulled away on a jumper by Walter
Phillips and a lay up by Bill Hardwick. Josh Daniels sealed the
victory for USM, sinking two free throws with 14 seconds to
play.
The Monks were led by Mitch Ouellet with a season-high 14 points,
10 boards, and freshman Elbie Murphy (Loudonville, NY) with 11
points.
St. Joe's travels to Maine Farmington for a 7:30 game on 2/6/06.
