The Middlebury men's basketball team got within two (67-65) with 1:45 remaining in Friday's second half, but Amherst knocked down eight free throws for a 75-67 win over the Panthers.  
 
HIGHLIGHTS

• Middlebury slowly moved out to a 9-5 lead with 12:39 left in the opening half on a layup from Mark Newell. 
• The Mammoths slowly whittled away at the deficit over the next four minutes, knotting the contest at 12-12 with a bucket by Drew Martin at the 8:17 mark.
• The Panthers responded with a quick 8-1 burst, fueled by six points from Sam Stevens, for a 20-13 advantage with 6:55 showing on the clock.
• Amherst tallied 15 of the next 22 points over three minutes, securing a narrow 28-27 edge with 3:45 left on a three-point shot by Marc Garraud.
• The teams traded small leads over the remainder of the half before a three from Martin pulled the hosts within one (39-38) at the break.
• The Mammoths opened the second stanza with a 9-3 run over the initial 3:57, capped by a free throw by C.J. Mitchell to take a 47-42 lead.
• Middlebury posted nine of the ensuing 13 points, grabbing a 52-51 advantage on a pair of free throws by Maxwell Alberts.
• Deadlocked at 59-59 with 5:26 showing on the clock, Mitchell kickstarted an 8-0 spurt with a shot from beyond the arc to make the score 67-59.
• Threes by Sawyer Ramey and Kuba Cwalina cut the Amherst cushion to 67-65 with 1:45 remaining, but the Mammoths converted eight free throws over the remainder of the contest to secure the 75-67 victory.

NOTES

• Stevens finished with a game-high 26 points, giving him 1,205 for his career. He becomes the 13th Panther to surpass 1,200 points.
• The programs met for the 78th time.

Middlebury wraps up its regular season on Saturday when it plays Hamilton at 3:00 p.m.