By Zach Perbeck

NEW LONDON, Conn. - Despite a great shooting performance, including making upwards of 50 percent of its shots from the field and 45 percent from beyond the arc, the Connecticut College men's basketball team fell to undefeated Clark University on Saturday afternoon by a score of 74-70.
 
Throughout the entire first half, the game remained close, with neither team able to pull away from the other. Connecticut College got off to a fast start, as it jumped out to an eight-point lead with 12 minutes remaining in the half on the heels of eight points by sophomore Ben Rice (Hanson, Mass.). The lead was not safe for long as Clark went on a seven-point scoring run fueled by Isaiah Taylor, who would finish with a game-high 22 points, and gave the Cougars the lead with just over seven minutes remaining. The Camels were able to retake the lead prior to heading into the half on a made three-pointer by sophomore guard Billy Whelan (Hamilton, Mass.), and after the first 20 minutes, the score was 31-28 in favor of Connecticut College.
 
The second half continued to be a back-and-forth affair as both teams found themselves in the bonus early due to foul problems. With five minutes remaining and the score tied at 61 apiece, both teams found themselves at the free-throw line often, and Clark was the benefactor of the free-throw shootout.
 
The Cougars finished the game 18-of-23 from the free throw line while the Camels struggled, shooting just 7-of-14. Despite the free-throw disparity, the Camels remained in the game throughout the last five minutes with opportunities to send the game to overtime. A key 3-pointer by Rice with just 16 seconds left in the game brought the Camels within two points and once again ended up with Clark going to the free-throw line.
 
After Taylor converted on one of his two opportunities from the line, Connecticut College had a chance to tie the game again. An errant pass with nine seconds left gave the ball back to the Cougars, who would go to the line and put the game out of reach.
 
Freshman Cam Schainfeld (Newton, Mass.) led the way for the Camels with 18 points and six rebounds. Rice and Whelan both shot 4-of-6 from the 3-point line and ended the game with 14 and 15 points, respectively, in the losing effort.
 
For Clark (9-0), Taylor led the way in scoring with 22 points. Tyler Davern contributed 18 points and four rebounds to pace the Cougars.
 
The Camels led their opponent in field goal percentage, 52.9 percent to 42.6 percent, and 3-point field percentage, 45 percent to 37 percent, while Clark led in free throw percentage by a total of 78.3 percent to 50 percent. The Camels outrebounded their opponents 33-28, and the two teams tied with 12 assists apiece. Despite swiping the ball from Clark 12 times, Connecticut College lost the turnover battle by giving the ball away 20 times compared to only 13 for Clark.
 
Connecticut College (2-4) will next take on Johnson & Wales on Wednesday evening at 7:00 p.m. in Providence, R.I.