Falcons Rebound Over Spartans, 78-63

Castleton, Vt. – The Fitchburg State Men's Basketball team defeated the Spartans of Castleton University this evening in non-conference action from the Glenbrook Gymnasium.

 The Basics

Score: Fitchburg State 78, Castleton 63

Fitchburg State (6-5) I Castleton (1-7)

How It Happened

1st half

Fitchburg State jumped out to a 9-3 advantage as senior Jordan Jones (Worcester, Mass.) and sophomore Devon Johnson (Washington, D.C.) hit buckets, while freshman Toskany Abreu (Salem, Mass.) added a three-pointer.

Castleton cut the lead to 9-5 as junior Amadou Kiakite (Harlem, N.Y.) knocked down a three ball before senior Nicholas Tracy (Indianapolis, Ind.) converted a pair of free throws for the 13-7 edge. The Falcons extended their margin (19-9) with senior Tyrell St. John (Stamford, Conn.) and Abreu connecting on back-to-back three pointers.

The Green and Gold upped their lead to 31-21 with senior Charles Doss (Fitchburg, Mass.) hitting a layup, but the Spartans cut the deficit to 31-26 going into the break as newcomer Nate Plaisted (Colorado Springs, Colo.) buried a three pointer, while classmate John Walsh (Greenwich, N.Y.) connected on a pair from the charity stripe.

2nd half

Following the intermission, Fitchburg State went on a 9-2 run on a three-pointer by Abreu, four free throws from Johnson and a jumper by Jones for the 40-29 lead. Doss and Jones would added buckets for the Falcons to up the lead to 46-32, but Diakite knocked down another three pointer to the cut the lead to 46-35.

Castleton chipped the deficit to 56-54 when junior Denis LeCours (Hardwick, Vt.) hit a three ball. The Green and Gold answered back with Tracy notching a layup for the 58-54 advantage. With the score 62-60, Fitchburg State responded with a 9-2 stretch, capped by a Tracy jumper for the 71-63 margin.

Fitchburg State would secure the victory as freshman Trevian Hinson (Tampa, Fla.) Johnson and Doss connected on layups late in the contest, resulting in the 78-63 final.

Inside the Numbers

• Falcons were led by Doss with a game-leading 22 points and ten rebounds
• Johnson chipped in with 15 points, nine boards and five assists for Fitchburg State
• Junior Terrin Roy (Lawrence N.Y.) led the way for the Spartans with 16 points and three assists
• Diakite added 11 points and two steals for Castleton
• 11th meeting between the two teams on the basketball court with the Falcons 7-4 all-time vs the Spartans
• Fitchburg State shot 27-for-61 (44.3%) from the field and (6-of-14) 42.9% from three point range
• Castleton finished 23-of-55 (41.8%) overall and (10-for-22) 45.5% for beyond the arc
• Falcons held a 46-26 margin on the glass

Up Next

Falcons are off until after the New Year when they travel to Williams College on Monday, January 6th to take on the Ephs for a non-conference tilt, starting at 6:00 PM. Spartans will visit SUNY Cobleskill on Saturday for a non-conference bout at 2:00 PM.