Balanced Effort Leads SMCC Past ACPHS

SOUTH PORTLAND, Maine — The Southern Maine Community College (SMCC) men's basketball team used a dominant defensive effort and balanced scoring attack to secure a 68–53 win over Albany College of Pharmacy & Health Sciences on Saturday afternoon at The HUB. The victory bumps the Seawolves to 5–1 on the season and 3–1 in YSCC play. 

HOW IT HAPPENED

SMCC established control early, opening with active hands and fast-break conversions. Ebe Efosa-Aguobor (Lawrence, Mass.) set the tone defensively with a steal and layup to ignite a 7–0 run, while Ellis Macea (Lawrence, Mass.) attacked the paint for early buckets.

Albany tried to counter with perimeter shooting, but the Seawolves repeatedly turned stops into transition chances. Chance Mercier (Ellsworth, Maine) buried a first-half three, and Sam DeWitt (Hudson, N.H.) controlled the offense with great playmaking helping SMCC push its lead to 35–26 at halftime. 

The Seawolves erupted to start the second half, unleashing a 14–3 stretch sparked by Nathan Mugisha (Rwanda, East Africa) owning the glass and finishing through contact. Moments later, Jace Bessey (Jay, Maine) drilled back-to-back threes to blow the game open, extending the advantage to 20.

ACPHS attempted to claw back behind mid-range jumpers and free throws, but SMCC's depth closed the door. Braden Rodrigue (Winslow, Maine) attacked downhill for a pair of layups, and Josh Jones (Highlands Ranch, Colo.) converted a late steal into a transition score to seal the wire-to-wire win. 

BY THE NUMBERS

• Ellis Macea: 16 points, 8 rebounds, 2 steals
• Ebe Efosa-Aguobor: 14 points on 6–9 shooting
• Jace Bessey: 11 points, including 3 made threes
• Nathan Mugisha: 7 points, 10 rebounds, 2 blocks
• Sam DeWitt: 6 points, 6 assists, 3 rebounds
• Sean Bosia (Dracut, Mass.): 4 points, 6 rebounds
• Team shooting: 42.3% FG, 31.8% 3PT, 75% FT
• SMCC forced 17 turnovers, scoring 23 points off giveaways
• Seawolves won the rebounding battle 46–34

NEXT UP

SMCC (5–1, 3–1 YSCC) returns to action on Tuesday, November 18, hosting the University of Great Bay Community College at 7:30 PM at The HUB.