JOHNSON, Vt. – The Johnson State College men's basketball team dropped a North Atlantic Conference (NAC) game to Castleton University, 77-65 on Thursday evening in Carter Gym.
The Badgers drop to 3-5 (0-2 NAC) on the season, while Castleton improves to 6-2 (3-1 NAC)
1st Half
The Badgers stayed even through the first five minutes, tied 11-11 until Castleton went on a 13-4 run to push the lead to 10 at the ten-minute mark. Castleton would continue to keep their lead, going into the break, up 48-36. Marqwon Wynn (Wilmington, Del.) led Johnson in the half with 13 points, while Jeyquan Johnson (Harlem, N.Y.) added ten points.
2nd Half
Johnson came out of the break and chipped away at the lead. The Badgers cut Castleton's lead down to 3 with 11:37 left in the game, the closest the Badgers would come to the visitors, as Castleton pulled away with a 79-67 victory. Hayden Tomlinson (Bradford, Vt.) led the Badgers through the second half, putting up eight points. Wynn also contributed, putting up seven points and pulling down five rebounds.
Johnson Leaders
Wynn led Johnson with 20 points, with Johnson adding 12 points and Tomlinson tacking on 11 more.
Castleton Leaders
Chad Copeland led Castleton with 30 points and ten rebounds followed by Edmund Fitzgerald with 14 points and 11 rebounds. Julian Santos added 12 points while Tondi Mushandu contributed 11 points and nine rebounds.
Stat Breakdown
Castleton shot 58.9% from the field to Johnson's 38.3%, while also outrebounding the Badgers 40-24. Johnson was better from the free-throw line, with a 66.7%-50% advantage. Castleton led by as many as 17 while Johnson never held a lead.
Next Up
Johnson will travel to Green Mountain College on Saturday, December 10th for a North Atlantic Conference match, slated to start at 1:00 p.m.