The UVM men's basketball team needed two overtimes to do it, but they outlasted St. Bonaventure in a thriller, despite missing one of their best players.
Ernie Duncan was sidelined after suffering an injury in UVM's previous win against Northeastern, but leading scorer Anthony Lamb answered the bell in his absence, pouring in a career high 42 points in the Catamounts' 83-76 win before a packed Patrick Gym last night.
Stef Smith was almost invisible in the first half, scoring just two points, but finished the night with 21, finding his offensive rhythm in the second half, but UVM still needed to overcome a 14-point deficit in the second frame just to get to the first overtime.
That came courtesy of a Robin Duncan lay-up with just one second left on the clock when he put back a missed free throw by Ben Shungu, who played a career high 39 minutes for the Catamounts, the former Rice Memorial stand-out finishing with seven points and four rebounds.
The teams were still tied after one overtime frame and the Cats fell behind by a four point margin in the second, but kept battling, and a Stef Smith fadeaway three pointer cut the deficit to one before UVM pulled away with a three pointer by Lamb and key free throws down the stretch by Shungu and Robin Duncan, the latter playing his best game as a freshman with six assists, and the Catamounts nailed down their most dramatic win of the year while running their winning streak to have a dozen games.
Elsewhere in men's college hoops, St. Michael's used a 19-0 second half run to pull away from Post University for an 80-71 victory at the Ross Sports Center in Colchester. Levi Holmes the Third led the way, just missing a double double with 33 points and 9 rebounds, going five for ten from beyond the arc, and the Purple Knights improve to 4-7 on the season with the win. The Knights were especially aggressive on the boards, out-rebounding Post 51-31 in their final home game of the first semester.
The Middlebury Panthers were also winners, topping Hilbert 95-87, but they had to overcome a 12-point second half deficit to do it. Matt Folger was a big part of that effort, throwing down 26 points to go with 11 rebounds, four blocked shots and four assists, and the Panthers end their first half schedule with an 8-2 record, and a 24th NCAA ranking among division three men's hoops teams.
In the NHL the Toronto Maple Leafs continued their offensive onslaught, this time victimizing the Devils in a 7-2 win in New Jersey last night. The Leafs put this one away early, getting goals from John Tavares, Auston Matthews and Patrick Marleau just over ten minutes into the game.
The Montreal Canadiens have a road game against the Avalanche in Colorado tonight.
Still in waiting mode on some of the biggest free agent names looking for new homes in Major League Baseball, but one former star is hoping another change of scenery will revive his career. Former NY Mets pitcher Matt Harvey has agreed to a one year, $11 Million deal with the LA Angels. Injuries derailed Harvey's stint with the Mets, but he did pitch better last year with the last place Cincinnati Reds and the Angels are willing to take a chance on Harvey with a one-year, little risk contract.
Finally, a nod to the director of one of the best baseball movies ever made. Penny Marshall of Laverne and Shirley fame died yesterday at the age of 75. She directed Rosie O'Donnell, Geena Davis, Madonna, and Tom Hanks in the film "A League of Their Own", about the women's baseball league that became wildly popular during World War Two, and sparked a catch-phrase many people who didn't even see the film nevertheless know, "There's no crying in baseball."
