Waterville, MAINE- Colby Men's Basketball hosted Tufts University yesterday, February 8th, at 7:00 PM. Before this matchup up the Mules had won four of their last six, but lost their last two. The Jumbos won the previous matchup between these two teams on March first, 102-94. Unfortunately the outcome of their second matchup was remarkably similar, ending in a 61-53 Colby loss. 

The game was very close through the first half, ending at 26-22.  Tufts took the lead here simply because of the number of shots they were able to jack as a team, taking 35 while Colby only took 25. Neither team was shooting efficiently as the Mules shot 9-25 and 1-10 from three, and the Jumbos shot 11-35 and 2-14 from three. Colby had 15 rebounds, five assists, four blocks, and two steals in the half.

In the second both teams improved their shooting percentages. The Mules shot 43.3% from the field while the Jumbos shot 40.7%. Both teams continued to shoot the three, with neither being above 30% for the half. Free throws made the largest difference, as Tufts shot 10-15 from the line while Colby only attempted four. Tufts' willingness to take contact and get to the free throw line demonstrates well how they were able to take control of the game and never let go, only allowing Colby the lead for a total of three minutes and 33 seconds in the game, none of which came in the second half. The Mules' inability to knock down threes coupled with their unwillingness to force their way to the line entirely explains how this one slipped away. 

Despite the tough ending, Lucas Green and Jack Lawson performed very well. Green had 19 points on 13 shots, three rebounds, three assists, one block, and one steal. Lawson had his second great game in a row, this time scoring 12 points on 6-17 shooting, five rebounds, three assists, one block, and steal. Both players will look to continue their good play and to keep the team pushing.

Colby Men's Basketball will next travel to Wesleyan University in Connecticut on Friday, February 11th. There they will look to bounce back for a win rather than lose their fourth straight game.