Seawolves Take Home YSCC Championship Title

AUBURN, Maine — The fourth-seeded Southern Maine Community College men's basketball team erased a 16-point second-half deficit to defeat second-seeded University of Maine-Augusta, 90-87, and capture the YSCC Championship on Sunday afternoon at Kirk Hall.

With the victory, SMCC improves to 23-6 and earns an automatic bid to the USCAA National Tournament in Buffalo, New York.

HOW IT HAPPENED

SMCC came out firing early, building a 19-11 advantage behind a standout surge from Ellis Macea (Lawrence, Mass.) and perimeter shooting from Chance Mercier (Ellsworth, Maine). The Moose responded with a late first-half push, closing the half on a 12-4 run capped by a layup at the buzzer to take a 42-36 lead into the break.

UMA extended that momentum early in the second half. With 16:29 remaining, a dunk pushed UMA's lead to 56-40, the largest lead of the afternoon. A three-pointer from Sean Bosia (Dracut, Mass.) at the 16:12 mark sparked the Seawolves rally. Moments later, Mercier converted an and-one opportunity, and Ellis Macea finished inside to cut the deficit to single digits.

Trailing 65-61 with just under nine minutes to play, freshman guard Jace Bessey (Jay, Maine) drilled an and-one three-pointer to tie the game at 65-65 completing the four-point play to give level the score. On the very next possession, Sam DeWitt (Hudson, N.H.) buried a three to swing the momentum entirely.

The Seawolves had flipped a 16-point hole into a three-point lead. Mercier attacked the rim repeatedly, scoring on back-to-back layups to push the lead to 72-69. Bessey added another clutch triple at the 7:13 mark to give SMCC a 75-71 edge.

The Moose answered every basket. With under two minutes remaining and SMCC clinging to an 88-87 lead, DeWitt knocked down a mid-range jumper to extend the margin to three. In the final minute, SMCC forced a crucial miss from beyond the arc and secured the rebound. Mercier split a pair of free throws to make it 89-87, and on the ensuing possession, DeWitt came up with a steal with two seconds remaining to seal the championship.

BY THE NUMBERS

• Chance Mercier: 27 points (10-12 FT), 2 steals
• Ellis Macea: 18 points, 12 rebounds (double-double)
• Sam DeWitt: 13 points, 12 assists, 3 steals
• Jace Bessey: 12 points off the bench, two big second-half threes
• SMCC overcame a 16-point second-half deficit
• The Seawolves scored 54 second-half points

Tournament Accolades:

• Tournament MVP: Chance Mercier
• Defensive Player of the Tournament: Sean Bosia

WHAT'S NEXT

With the YSCC Championship secured, SMCC earns a bid to the USCAA National Tournament in Buffalo, New York. Tournament seeding will be finalized during the USCAA Bid Show on Tuesday, February 24.