Volume CXXXIII, Number 12 December 7, 2001 f

Men's basketball dominates Bowdoin-Bates Classic, falls to Bates
J.P. HERNANDEZ
STAFF WRITER

The Bowdoin College men's basketball team enjoyed great success last weekend in the Bowdoin-Bates Men's Basketball Classic. The team roundly defeated both Suffolk University and Thomas College, and completed the Classic as the only team without a loss.

The Bears' four-game winning streak was broken on Wednesday, however, in a close 68-63 loss to Bates.

In the first game of the Bowdoin-Bates Classic, against Suffolk University last Saturday, the team came home with a 72-60 victory. On the strength of 51% shooting, the team ended the first half up 44-25. Although Suffolk tried to mount a comeback in the second half, Bowdoin continued its tenacious play and never let go of the lead.

Scott Jamieson '02 warms up in Morrell Gym. (Karsten Moran, Bowdoin Orient)

Senior guard Greg Orlicz had the hot hand for Bowdoin, collecting a team-high 25 points with a combination of good three-point shooting (4-7) and strong drives to the basket.

The next day, the Bears took on Thomas College and were thoroughly dominant in a 105-37 win. Bowdoin outscored Thomas by a 61-18 margin in the second half.

Five Bowdoin players pulled in ten points or more toward the team's impressive point total: T.J. McLeod '04, Danny Ginn '03, Hugh Coleman '02, Chris Ranslow '02, and Sean Walker '05.

Things didn't end up as well at Bates on Wednesday, however. The Bears fought their way through a close game and wound up on the losing end of a 68-63 score.

First year Sean Walker said that the Bears made a few too many errors against a talented Bobcat team. "We led for most of the game, but they converted on a few of our mistakes," he said. "They made some important foul shots and we just never seemed to get that one important basket to keep us ahead."

Orlicz poured in 25 points for Bowdoin, while Ranslow added ten points and ten rebounds of his own. "Greg had another great game, especially considering that he wasn't expected to play because of a recent knee injury," Walker said. "[First year] Mark Yakavonic also provided a spark off the bench with several rebounds and some great blocked shots.

"We performed as we had hoped on defense, for the most part," he added. "We forced them to take some bad shots and to lose their composure at points. We also did a good job limiting their second shot opportunities."
The team's record stands at 5-2 and the Bears have collected wins in four of its last five games.

Sophomore guard McLeod, who shot a perfect 4-4 from behind the arc on his way to a team-high 15 points against Thomas, was enthusiastic in talking about the team and its prospects for the season.

"Our team is really playing great basketball this year," he said. "We have players who can contribute to this team in unique, special ways, and we have really gelled as a team."

The Bears play tomorrow, when they travel to Norwich for a 4:00 game. They break for winter vacation after that matchup, and won't play again until January 5th, when they face Babson on the road.

"We just want to get a victory to go into break 6-2," Walker said. "This will put us in a good position to keep winning once the NESCAC season opens up in January."