NEW HAVEN, Conn.—Junior
Nate Amado (Hanson, Mass.) poured in a career-high 32 points but visiting Babson College suffered a 75-72 loss at Albertus Magnus College in non-conference men's basketball action on Saturday afternoon inside the Messer Center.
With the loss, Babson is now 1-1 on the year while Albertus Magnus starts the season at 1-0.
Amado went 11-of-21 from the floor and added five rebounds, three assists a block and a steal to pace the Beavers. Sophomore
Timmy O'Toole (Milton, Mass.) finished with 10 points, eight boards and two steals, junior
Aidan Horan (Orchard Park, N.Y.) also had 10 points and graduate student
Steph Baxter (Worcester, Mass.) dished out a game-high five assists to go with nine points.
Justice Washington posted a double-double with 16 points and 14 rebounds to lead four players in double figures for the Falcons.
The first half featured four ties and 12 lead changes with the largest lead for either team coming at 20-14 following a 7-0 run by Babson at the 11:03 mark. Albertus Magnus countered with a 10-2 burst of its own to go in front 24-22 and closed the stanza with a 9-3 spurt that included six points by Antonio Bonilla to give the hosts a 37-34 advantage at the break.
Down six less than four minutes into the second half, the Beavers used a three-pointers by Horan and Baxter to cut their deficit to 49-47. The Falcons responded with back-to-back hoops by Washington as part of a 7-0 run to grab its largest lead of the game at 58-49 with 12:06 to play.
Junior
David Cross (Cinnaminson, N.J.) and Amado canned triples to help Babson pull within three at 64-61 with 7:00 left, and Amado followed up two free throws by senior
John Gorgol (Scottsdale, Ariz.) to make it 70-67 with 1:17 remaining. Amado's layup with 28 seconds to go made it a one-possession game against at 71-69 but Tazhon Daniels went 4-for-4 at the free throw line over the final 16 seconds to seal the victory for the hosts.
The Beavers shot just 39.7 percent, while the Falcons shot 45.6 percent from the floor and outscored the Green and White 38-24 in the paint and 21-7 at the free throw line.
Babson returns to action next Friday when it meets 22nd-ranked Washington University at the Lopata Classic in St. Louis, Mo., at 8 p.m., while Albertus Magnus hosts Hartford on Tuesday at 7 p.m.
GAME NOTES
• The Beavers are now 1-2 all-time against Albertus Magnus with both losses coming on the road.
• Saturday's loss was just the second for Babson over its last six contests decided by five points or less since the start of last season.
• The Beavers allowed more than 64 points for just the third time over their last 18 outings going back to early January of last year.
