Auburn, ME – CMCC Men's Basketball got back on the winning track with a dominating display against UMaine-Fort Kent. The Mustangs opened the month of November with a 99-85 victory against the USCAA DI squad. Freshman Javion Jacobs continued his recent hot streak, setting a new career high with 37 points while J.T. Pound recorded a double-double with 18 points and 11 rebounds.
Central Maine went on a 13-0 run early in the first half to open up a 19-8 lead, but the Bengals countered with a run of their own to go back in front 25-23 with under nine minutes remaining. It stayed close until halftime with both sides edging out in front of the other in a first half that featured ten lead changes. Jaden Williams had all nine of his points in the opening 20 minutes to keep his side ahead.
The Mustangs went into the break up 48-44 and controlled the second half from there. CMCC outscored UMFK 24-10 through the first ten minutes after the restart to take their largest lead of the game, going up by 18. Jacobs and Pound combined for 16 of those points to plant momentum firmly on the host's side.
Fort Kent trimmed the lead down as low as seven points with 6:19 to play but could get no closer. Seven points from point guard Will Duke down the stretch helped put to bed any hopes of a comeback attempt. Jacobs made his final shot with a minute remaining, as Central Maine finished one point shy of the century mark. It was CMCC's first victory against Fort Kent since the 2023-24 season.
"This was our last tuneup before starting conference play, and we wanted to take another step forward," said head coach Dave Gonyea. "We're finding our rotations, players are embracing their roles, and everyone is buying into the process. This was a good team win and a positive step forward."
Jacobs' 37 points on 16-for-22 shooting surpassed his 22 points scored against UMaine-Farmington on Thursday. The first-year from Houston, TX also snagged 13 rebounds and dealt out four assists to join Pound with a double-double. Duke was the third player to score in double figures, finishing with 14 points, including two three-pointers. Williams' nine led all Central Maine players off the bench with Keiontay Marsh ending up with seven, and starters Ryan White and Creighty Dickson providing five points each. Dickson also had a team-high six assists.
UMaine-Fort Kent had four of their starters in double digits with Deandre Johnson (21), Donovan Johnson (19), Sam Williams (15), and Antonio Speed (14) leading the way offensively. The Bengals struggled with bench production though, getting only 11 points contributed with eight of them coming from Drew Rogers. UMFK did have 11 steals and forced 22 turnovers compared to only their 15, but struggled from the floor, shooting only 30-for-74 (40.5%).
The Mustangs improve to 2-5 on the year and now set their sights on their conference opener, a visit to fellow in-state rival UMaine-Augusta on Wednesday, November 5th at the Augusta Civic Center. CMCC will face former assistant coach Steve Carey who is now the head coach of the Moose, in his first meeting against his former squad. Tip-off is set for 8:00 pm.
