Box Score
TOWSON, Md.—Gordon Men's Basketball fell on the wrong end of a seesaw battle with Roanoke College in the team's final game at the Goucher Classic. The Scots led by five points at the halftime break, but the Maroons scored five of the game's final seven points to eek out a 74-71 over the Scots.
The Scots started off the game hot from behind the arch with made triples by James Ek (Saco, Maine) and freshman Dominic Paradis (Rochester, N.H.), giving Gordon a 13-6 advantage. The deep range shot would be unkind to the Scots for the remainder of the game, finishing 2-of-20 from downtown.
With a huge facet of their identity not clicking, the Scots turned to senior shooting guard Alex Carnes (Phoenix, Ariz.) The slasher found plenty of open lanes while cutting to the hoop, as he finished with 20 points to lead Gordon's attack.
For the second straight day the Scots held a lead at the halftime break, thanks to some lockdown defense by their stalwart, Hans Miersma (Whitinsville, Mass.) The 6-10 center totaled four blocks in the game, while guarding the Maroons' best player in Daniel Eacho (North Chesterfield, Va.) Miersma's presence forced Eacho into some tough shots in the post and limited Roanoke's 6-8 forward to only nine points in the first half.
However, Eacho was a difference-maker in the second half as the Maroons ran more set plays for him. Eacho totaled 15 points in the second half—24 for the game—and helped erase a 35-30 deficit at halftime to a tie game with less than two minutes to play.
The Maroon's second leading scorer, Andrew Daniels (Fairfax, Va.) got free from his defender during a 67-67 game and hit a dagger from three-range to give Roanoke a slender lead.
Gordon point guard Park Thomas (Scottsdale, Ariz.) responded with a runner in the lane to bring the game back within a point with just over a minute to play. The Scots got the ball back after a missed Eacho jumper, but a clever steal by Roanoke's Cameron Smith (Lexington, N.C.) gave the team a fast-break chance, which Smith finished on the other end.
Jason Dempsey (Wallingford, Conn.) brought the Scots back within a point on a jumper in the lane with eight ticks on the clock. The Maroons made both of their ensuing free throws to set up a chance for Gordon to tie the game in the closing seconds.
Thomas missed a long three as the clock expired, as the Scots dropped their second consecutive game to begin the year.
Dempsey finished with seven points and 10 boards, while Taylor Bajema (Whitinsville, Mass.) finished second in scoring behind Carnes with 13 points.
Gordon continues their tough early-season schedule with a trip to highly-touted MIT on Tuesday night in Cambridge.
