Men’s basketball splits home weekend, including loss to NESCAC leader Colby

The Panthers took on Albertus Magnus, a team in the midst of an 11-game winning streak at the time, on Tuesday, January 14th. This series of victories ended as Midd landed an 84–76 victory over the Falcons. The Panthers trailed by six early, but turned the game around to own an eight-point lead at the end of the half. Middlebury led by as many as 21 points in the second half, which would be cut down to seven late in the game but the Panthers held on for the eight-point victory. Max Bosco ‘21 led Middlebury’s offense, putting up 23 points. Matt Folger ‘20, Tommy Eastman ‘21, Jack Farrell ‘21, and Ryan Cahill ‘21 also turned in double digit point performances.

Middlebury suffered their second loss with an 89–82 loss to an undefeated Colby on Friday, January 17th. The contest began in back and forth fashion with Colby taking a 9–2 lead. Middlebury would comeback to within a point before Colby soared to a ten point advantage fueled by an 8–0 stretch. The Panthers closed out the half on a 7–2 run to cut the deficit to five. This pattern extended into the second half as Colby got back out a double digit lead, which the Panthers cut to four, only to have the Mules stretch the lead out to eleven. In a furious comeback bid, the Panthers sailed into the lead thanks to a 15–2 run. This didn’t last long as Colby turned the game around again to take a ten point lead that they didn’t surrender this time, and Midd lost by seven. In the defeat, Farrell led the squad with a 20 point performance Eastman followed with 14 points, and Folger added 12 rebounds.

The Panthers were quick to make up with an offensive onslaught on Saturday, January 18th against Bowdoin. The game remained tight throughout the first half, going into the break with Middlebury on top 40–34. The Panthers hit the ground running in the second half going on a 31–12 run fueled by three three-pointers by Cahill and two each from Folger and Kornaker. Bowdoin went on a 14–4 run but Midd’s lead only grew from there and they soared to a 93–71 victory. It was the fifth time Midd surpassed the 90-point mark this season and it was led by a 19 point effort from Bosco, 17 points from Eastman, and 16 points and six rebounds from Farrell. Cahill delivered 13 points off the bench. Folger led the team with seven rebounds and Kornaker had eight assists to lead the squad. Middlebury returns to action on Saturday against Williams at 3 p.m. at Midd.