Victory was snatched from underneath the men's basketball team on Saturday afternoon as Bates (10-9, 1-3 NESCAC) rallied from a 17-point deficit to stun the Polar Bears at home on Saturday afternoon. The team falls to 11-4 (1-2 NESCAC) with the loss.
After trading baskets early in the game, the team went on a 13-4 run capped by a Wyatt Littles '12 three-pointer. Justin Nowell '12 beat the buzzer with a layup to give the Polar Bears a 48-31 lead heading into halftime.
It seemed as if the men had control of the game throughout the first half, shooting 56 percent from the field and holding Bates to just 20 percent. But the Bobcats stormed out of the locker room with a 12-0 run led by a stellar second half performance from Reid Christian, who came off the bench to connect on 5 of 6 three pointers.
With nine minutes to play, Bates had trimmed the deficit to one point. Despite solid shooting from the field, the Polar Bears failed to connect on free-throw attempts (10-20) and committed a total of 15 turnovers.
Bates took care of the ball (6 turnovers) and nailed 24 of 30 free throw attempts. A three pointer in the final two minutes gave the Bobcats a four-point lead and the Polar Bears were forced to send Bates to the free-throw line. They connected on 7 of 8 attempts and left Morrell Gymnasium with a 75-71 victory.
"We just gave up way too many 3's in the second half," said Nowell. "We let them get the momentum back and that really fueled them...Regardless, when you're up 17 points at halftime you should win the game."
Nowell led Bowdoin with 19 points, while Will Hanley '12 posted 13 points and 10 rebounds. Randy DeFeo '11 and Ryan O'Connell '12 added 13 and 12 points, respectively, for the Polar Bears.
The team also failed to hold on to a substantial lead the previous night against Tufts (9-8, 2-2 NESCAC), who earned its first conference victory and snapped the Polar Bears 8-game winning streak.
The Polar Bears jumped out to a 14-4 lead but Tufts immediately responded with their own 18-5 run.
The visitors led 22-19 at halftime and continued their momentum out of the locker room by hitting four of their first five three pointers.
The Polar Bears fought back within 6 points after a three pointer from DeFeo with 4:12 to play. Sharp free throw shooting by the opposing team again sunk Bowdoin's chance at a win, as Tufts knocked down 14-17 attempts to secure the 64-55 conference victory.
Hanley posted a double-double with 18 points and 17 rebounds. DeFeo had 11 points and 5 assits, while Nowell contributed 10 points for the Polar Bears who shot only 35 percent from the field.
After losing consecutive conference games last weekend, the Polar Bears look to rebound this weekend as they travel to Trinity (10-8, 1-2 NESCAC) and Amherst (16-0, 3-0 NESCAC).
The team has performed well on the road (7-1), and is optimistic about this weekend and future NESCAC play.
"Right now we are still 11-4 so there is no reason to panic," said Nowell. "Every team in this league is a tough out and we know that if we come to play we can beat anyone on any given night."