Held to 7 at Half, McLaughlin Leads Farmington’s Rout of Presque Isle
The Beavers turned a tight game into an 84-58 win, taking the NAC title and a trip to the NCAA Tournament.
The University of Maine at Farmington men's basketball team defeated the University of Maine at Presque Isle 84-58 on Feb. 28 to win the North Atlantic Conference championship, the Bangor Daily News reported. The victory sends the Beavers to the Division III NCAA Tournament.
It is Farmington's second conference title in program history, and the tournament trip will be only its second ever.
Presque Isle kept the game close in the first half, holding Farmington star guard Zach McLaughlin to seven points. McLaughlin's 3-pointer at the halftime buzzer gave the Beavers a seven-point lead, and Farmington pulled away after the break. He finished with 19 points and was named the tournament's most valuable player.
Forward Jason Reynolds had 16 points and 20 rebounds for Farmington, and guard Gabe Michaud added 12 points and 10 assists.
Senior Akhe McMichael scored 16 points for Presque Isle, 14 of them before halftime. The Owls reached the final by eliminating Husson University, the conference champion in each of the past two seasons, in the semifinals. The appearance was the school's first in a conference title game in any sport since it joined the league in 2018.
Presque Isle finished the season 15-13, while Farmington improved to 22-5.
This story was first reported by Bangor Daily News.
