Men's basketball split a pair of decisions against conference rivals last weekend, defeating Wesleyan in a thriller, then falling to Connecticut College on Saturday.
Head coach Tom Gilbride remarked, "We had a pretty good weekend, but we would have liked to have gotten two wins."
On Friday, the Polar Bears started slowly against Wesleyan, shooting just 26 percent from the field and one-for-eight from behind the arc in the first half. The Cardinals, on the other hand, shot almost 70 percent from the field and 67 percent from behind the three-point line, including a torrent of treys from Jimmy Shepherd. Shepherd knocked down six three-pointers in the first 20 minutes. The Cardinals led by 17 at halftime, with a score of 43-26.
In the second half, the Polar Bears chipped away at the lead. Jordan Fliegel '08 and co-captain Kyle Petrie '06 combined for 30 points in the second half, and Bowdoin managed to take the lead before Wesleyan knotted the game at 67 with less than a minute to play.
The game seemed destined for overtime, until Petrie came up big.
"Kyle Petrie made a big shot for us, hitting a three-pointer with about five seconds left in the game," Gilbride said.
Petrie's jumper from the top of the key sealed the victory at 70-67, and gave the Bears a crucial NESCAC win.
Fliegel led Bowdoin scorers with 19 points on 64 percent shooting from the field, while Petrie added 17 points and nine rebounds. Junior Kevin Bradley and sophomore Andrew Hippert posted double digits, notching 14 and 10 points, respectively.
The Polar Bears were unable to find their rhythm against the Camels on Saturday.
"We couldn't quite get our edge against Conn. College, although we battled hard," Gilbride said.
The Polar Bears trailed by only five points at the half, but the Camels took control of the game after a 15-0 run in the second half.
Late game heroics were not to be, and Conn. College held on to its lead for a comfortable 76-58 victory.
Petrie led Bowdoin with 17 points in the game. Hippert added 12.
Despite the loss, Bowdoin is still in the postseason hunt. Playoff seeding has not been decided.
The squad plays host to Middlebury tonight at 7 p.m. and welcomes Williams tomorrow. Gilbride could not be more excited.
"We look forward to playing at home again in front of our great fans and the Polar Bear Nation," he said.