Auburn, ME - Men's basketball drops two games in Maine this weekend against conference foes. The Panthers heading up to Maine for the weekend to take on both Central Maine Community College and University at Maine Augusta. 

Vs CMCC: 
This was going to be a very hard task for the Panthers as Central Maine was voted #2 in the latest coach's poll from the USCAA this past week. Going into the game, coach Coleman switched up the starting lineup once again to see if the Panthers could get early momentum. Central Maine jumped out to an early double digit lead early in the game, and the Panthers were caught playing catchup. The Panthers really showed good signs of life as they were rebounding the ball well on the misses, but the Mustangs were attacking from the 3 point line. The Panthers had some signs of life with Brett Richards (Kinderhook, NY) dropped 8 points and 7 rebounds. The Panthers went into halftime down by 11. 

In the second half, the Panthers held their own, but it was the free throws, and more good shooting from the Mustangs. The Mustangs hit on over 50% of their shots, and knocked down 17 free throws to widen their lead. The Panthers shot well from the field, but struggled at the line, barely hitting on over 50% of their free throws. Nate Lynes (Miami, FL) scored 10 points in the half to lead the Panthers in this half. As for Richards, he finished with 12 points and 11 rebounds for his 4th double-double of the season. The Panthers had some more positives as 2 other Panthers joined Lynes and Richards in double figures. Levi Thomas (Fort Plain, NY) finished with 12 points himself, and Myles Washington (Alexandria, VA)  dropped 10 points himself. 

Vs UMA: 
The Panthers were looking to bounce back after a hard fought games against Central Maine. They came out firing and saw their first half percentage over 50% to start this game. The Panthers saw 3 of their starters almost in double digits to end the first half. Brett Richards continue his amazing play, scoring 7 points, and grabbing 7 rebounds. Abe Pogue (Ordell, NJ), dropped 7 points and Myles Washington joined them with 8 points for the hot start. Turnovers however, got the better of the Panthers and kept Maine Augusta in the game. The Panthers were only down 1 point going into the second half though. 

Turnovers continued to harm the Panthers, as Maine Augusta continued to capitalize on their mistakes. Maine Augusta jumped out to a decent lead that once again made the Panthers have to play catch up. They fell down by as many 20 points, but surged back in the last 5 minutes to start and scare Maine Augusta. Richards continued to show his dominance and once again produced another double-double. He scored 11 points, and grabbed 8 more rebounds to bring his total to 18 and 15. Pogue also dropped 6 more points to bring his total to 13, and Washington joined them being the last Panther in double figures. The Panthers lost by 10, but saw a bunch of signs they can keep up with any team that comes their way. 

They will have a couple days off before playing at home again on 12/7 against Clinton Community College at 5pm. 

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