Bench Play Adds To SeaWolves 71-43 Win

SOUTH PORTLAND, Maine— The Southern Maine Community College (SMCC) men's basketball team improved to 3-0 in its home opener at the HUB Gymnasium on Wednesday, Nov. 1 defeating first-year program Ben Franklin Institute of Technology 71-43.

Sophomore Timothy Dixon (Plainville, Conn.) made the first bucket of the game on a jumper from first-year Jacobee Burpee (Manchester, N.H.) to give the SeaWolves a lead they would only build to. SMCC and Ben Franklin traded baskets to finish the first half—the home team with a 10-point advantage.

The SeaWolves were better in the second, posting 42 points on 44.1 percent shooting (15-34). Burpee and sophomore Anderson Kavutse (Westbrook, Maine) both knocked down two three-pointers to contribute to SMCC's 7-14 from downtown—the result of patient ball movement to generate the open look. With a crowd of 146 on hand, the home team went up by 29, its largest lead of the evening, with 6:01 remaining.

As a team, the SeaWolves outrebounded the opposition 53-32 and assisted on 19 of its 27 makes. SMCC's bench accounted for 34 points.

Perhaps the story of the game was first-year Gregory Trinidad's (Lawrence, Mass) ability to create and knock down the three-ball. On his 21^st birthday, the six-foot guard erupted for 17 points in 17 minutes of work, making 4-6 from three as part of his 6-8 from the floor.

In a post-game interview, Head Coach Matt Richards reflected, "Now with the third game under our belt, I'm pleased with the on-going development of our players. We made strides tonight defensively that we focused on from this past weekend and I'm looking forward to continuing that this week in practice."

The SeaWolves march on with another non-conference home date against Holyoke Community College at 3 p.m. SMCC is 3-0 in its recent meetings with the team from Massachusetts. WATCH.

Following the game, SMCC Athletics inducts the SeaWolves Hall of Fame Class of 2017 with a special ceremony in the Ortiz Atrium inside the Campus Center at 7 p.m.

For the latest on SMCC's athletic programs, log onto GoSMCCSeawolves.com or follow Southern Maine Community College Athletics on Twitter @SMCCseawolves and on Facebook SMCC Seawolves.