NEW LONDON, Conn.---Tyler Rowe (East Hartford, Conn.) split a pair of defenders and banked in a lay- up with 16.1 seconds left to lift the Connecticut College men's basketball team to an 82-81 victory against Middlebury College Saturday.

Winners in nine out of their last 10 games, the Camels improved their record to 9-3 and are a perfect 2-0 in NESCAC play. The Panthers evened their record at 7-7 and are 1-1 in conference action.

Rowe finished with 13 points, four assists and two steals. Lee Messier (Narragansett, R.I.) dumped in a team-best 19 points in a 6-for-9 shooting performance, connecting on 4-of-6 shots from three-point range and 3-of-3 attempts at the charity stripe. Zuri Pavlin (New York, N.Y) chipped in with 11 points and 12 boards en route to a double-double, coming away with the final defensive board to preserve the win with two seconds left.

Colin Pascoe (Somers, Conn.) made some nice back-door cuts down on the block and finished with 10 points and three rebounds in a 5-for-6 night from the field. Daniel Janel (Fresh Meadows, N.Y.) finished with nine points and three assists for the winning side.

"That was a really hard fought game and both teams gave a ton of effort," Connecticut College Head Coach Tom Satran said. "Middlebury played great and showed so much resolve to come back. We couldn't get a rebound all game but somehow found a way to grab the last one. We have a lot upon which we can improve and will get right back at it next practice."

Junior guard Matt St. Amour (Swanton, Vt.) poured in a game-high 23 points to go with five rebounds for the Panthers, connecting on 7-of-12 shots from the floor, 4-of-7 attempts from long distance and 5-of-6 shots from the foul line. Senior forward Matt Daley (Fairfield, Conn.) was 7-for-10 from the field en route to his double-double, closing out the night with 16 points and 12 boards for Head Coach Jeff Brown's squad. Freshman Zach Baines (Stamford, Conn.) finished with 12 points in his return to the Nutmeg State.

Junior forward Brandon Carson (Glenmoore, Pa.) collected an offensive board early in the first half and Messier capitalized with a hoop in the paint to vault the Camels out to their first lead, 12-11 with 14:08 to go in the opening stanza. Later on in the half with 2:02 remaining, Pavlin and Rowe executed a nifty looking pick and roll with Pavlin finishing the play off with a left-handed jam that put the Camels on top 46-31.  But Daley converted three field goals in the closing moments and the Panthers ended the half with a 7-0 run to close the deficit to 46-38.

The visitors continued to claw back, mounting a 29-to-16 run to take a 75-72 lead when Adisa Majors (New York, N.Y.) knocked down a jumper with 4:46 remaining.  In a game that featured 12 lead changes, the Panthers broke the fifth tie of the game when Jake Brown (Hawley, Pa.) made one of two shots at the foul line with 59 seconds left.

The Panthers had a chance to add to their lead but could not connect on the front end of a one-and-one with 28 seconds left.

On their final possession, the Camels were able to isolate Rowe and the freshman point guard sprinted to the basket and banked in the runner that proved to be the difference.

Middlebury's last shot rimmed out and Pavlin corralled the rebound in a scramble to close out the 82-81 win.