Alejandro Garcia led Garrett College men’s basketball past Allegany College of Maryland in a 75-66 season-opening victory at the Diehl’s Ford Sales Classic in Cumberland. Garcia posted a double-double with 18 points and 10 rebounds for Garrett College.
Garrett College then fell to State University of New York-Niagara, 96-67, Sunday afternoon. The Lakers trailed 45-27 at halftime in the second game of the weekend.
Garcia leads Garrett College past Allegany
Garcia tied Allegany College of Maryland’s Elijah Hall for game-high scoring honors. Hall finished with 18 points, five assists and four rebounds, but no other Allegany player scored in double figures.
Rayden Triplett added 15 points and six rebounds for Garrett College, while Noah Brazil scored 12 points. Sefton Robinson contributed nine points off the bench, and Julian Kelly and Sultan Numanovic each scored seven points.
Garrett College shot 30 of 61 from the field and made 8 of 17 free-throw attempts. Allegany College of Maryland’s last lead came on a Landon Somerville jumper that made the score 13-11 with 13:19 remaining in the first half.
Garrett College responded with a 7-0 run that included consecutive layups from Garcia and Brazil and a 3-pointer from Numanovic. Allegany College of Maryland later trimmed the Garrett College lead to 42-41 with 15:37 remaining, but Garrett answered with a 6-0 surge featuring baskets from Triplett and Brazil.
Garrett College led by as many as 13 points down the stretch. Head coach Matt McCullough, who is starting his sixth season as head coach, said his team did not panic when Allegany cut into the lead.
“We didn’t panic when they cut into our lead,” McCullough said. “We continued to do good things on both sides of the ball.”
State University of New York-Niagara defeats Garrett College
State University of New York-Niagara used a 12-1 run to break away from a 12-12 tie and take control of Sunday’s game. Jaedon Hutchinson scored 15 points and grabbed five rebounds, while Jacob Humphrey produced a game-high 30 points.
Noah Brazil led Garrett College with 19 points, and Tommy Manus III added 12 points off the bench. Garcia scored nine points and grabbed a team-high six rebounds, while Kelly scored six points and led Garrett College with five assists.
Garrett College twice pulled within 14 points early in the second half, but State University of New York-Niagara answered with a 7-0 run to build a 54-33 advantage. McCullough described the game as an early “reality check” and praised the opposing team.
“They’re a very talented team in a lot of ways; one of the better teams I’ve seen since I’ve been at Garrett,” McCullough said. “Coach [Bill] Beilein does a really good job with them. They were big, physical, played hard, had really good guard play, and made shots. You don’t see many teams that have all those attributes.”
Garrett College schedule and women’s basketball
Garrett College hosts Community College of Allegheny County Wednesday at 7 p.m. The men’s basketball team then returns to Allegany College of Maryland for games against Community Christian (MI) College-Dearborn Friday at 5 p.m. and Cape Fear (NC) Community College Saturday at 1 p.m.
State University of New York-Niagara also defeated Garrett College women’s basketball, 76-62, in Garrett’s season opener. Azriel Hall led Niagara with 22 points, while sophomore Carly Wilt led Garrett College with 22 points and Jameriah Butler added 14.
Garrett College women’s basketball hosts Waynesburg (PA) University junior varsity Thursday at 5 p.m. Head coach JT Lewis said his team showed “a lot of heart” after trailing by 22 points at halftime.
Maryland Sports Blog Take
Garrett College opened its men’s basketball season with a victory powered by Garcia’s double-double and balanced scoring from Triplett and Brazil. The Lakers then faced a significant challenge against State University of New York-Niagara, which built a large halftime lead and secured the 96-67 win.
Garrett College’s upcoming schedule includes Community College of Allegheny County and two games at Allegany College of Maryland. Those contests will give the Lakers an early opportunity to build on the season-opening victory.
Source: Original report
