FARMINGTON, ME
It was a competitive, back-and-forth first half of the North Atlantic Conference Championship, but a mini-run at the end of the first half turned into a second half surge by the Beavers who got the home crowd into it and never gave up an ounce of momentum the rest of the way, giving Farmington it's first NAC Championship since 2010, and ending the Owls unbelievable second semester.
How it Happened:
It was a slow start to the game offensively, as both teams missed shots through the first couple of minutes, but Farmington made two threes over the next three minutes, en route to a 10-2 start which was almost worst-case-scenario for the Owls who fell behind 16-0 in their last matchup on that floor. But UMPI dug their heels in, spurring off a 5-0 run, and made a statement that they were in it to stay.
After a 16-9 lead with 12:06 left in the half, the Owls outplayed the Beavers for much of the rest of the half. Some made shots and a dunk brought the UMPI crowd into the game and made it 19-17 Beavers. UMPI fought back again as Yuki Ishibashi heated up, knocking down three triples, the final of which put UMPI on top for a moment 27-26 and silenced the home crowd. But unfortunately for UMPI, they made their run at the wrong time. UMF closed out the half strong, getting back ahead on the next possession and teams then traded buckets until it was 30-28 Beavers. Then Farmington did what they do.
The good teams find a way to score and end the first half with momentum. It's what they did in their last matchup up in Presque Isle, and it's what they did again today. Zack McLaughlin knocked down a beauty of a three-pointer to end the half, and put UMF up 37-30.
To start the second half, the pendulum stayed on the Beavers side, as they kept momentum and grew their lead to double figures, and never looked back. The Owls made a couple of shots to get it back to seven but were unable to keep any sort of momentum nor keep the crowd out of the game. UMF also started hitting shots from beyond the arc as well, as the three-ball started to fall. There was nothing the Owls could do to get back into the game as UMF kept growing the lead up to about 20 points with 5 minutes remaining. It was all over but the celebration. The Owls' glass slipper of their Cinderella run finally fell off, and the best team all season in the North Atlantic Conference, now had a trophy to go in the case. As they closed out the game 84-58, thanks to a 47-28 second half.
Top Performers:
Akhe McMichael fittingly led the Owls with 16 points, including a 6-7 first half from the field. He may have now wrapped up what was a hall-of-fame caliber career and one of the best to ever put on an Owls uniform. Yuki Ishibashi had 12 points off the bench including four threes, including a huge first half spark as he wraps up a great playoff run. Doug McCalla found a way to score 12 points despite being held to just two at half. Both Ishibashi and McCalla will return next year.
Next Up:
UMPI sits at 15-13 overall, after an 11-7 regular season conference record and a 2-1 postseason record. They started 2-10, and went 13-3 over their last 16 games, making it one of the best semesters in history, despite falling short in the final game. Dan Kane will lose 6 seniors: Akhe McMichael, Dwaine Williams, AJ Creech, Joelle Hodge, Aleix Moreno and James Yamashita. All of whom contributed in big ways this season as the Owls will have some big shoes to fill this offseason. But take this season for what it was: the Owls proved that they have one of the best programs in the conference in the postseason with their win over Husson. They got over the hump and won a close game against a more-than-worthy opponent, who's having one of the best years this conference has ever seen.
Like last year however, the Owls will await the possibility of playing extra basketball after NAC elimination, as they have declared for the ECAC Invitational Tournament that will begin first round games next weekend. UMPI may not have played their last game after all, and will await the selection committee's decision.
