CASTLETON, Vt. – Castleton used an early scoring run in the first half to spark a 74-60 win over Maine Maritime in North Atlantic Conference men's basketball game Friday. The Spartans improved to 10-10 overall, 8-5 NAC while the Mariners fell to 4-14, 3-9.

Andy Ball went 6-for-15 from the floor to finish with a team-high 16 points and five rebounds for the Maine Maritime. Paul Campbell chipped in with 11 points and six rebounds and Ben Russell finished with seven points and seven assists.

Logan White led three players in double figures with 19 points for Castleton. Mark Comstock added 14 points, nine rebounds and three assists while Chad Copeland scored 12 points and pulled down nine boards. 

The Spartans jumped out to a 6-2 lead on a pair of threes by Ackley and White just three minutes into the contest. Maine Maritime responded with a 13-5 run to take a 15-11 lead with 13:43 left in the half. Denny Wilhelm stopped the run and Comstock hit a pair of free throws to pull Castleton even at 15-15 with 12:31 remaining. The teams traded baskets over the next four minutes before a three by  Russell gave the Mariners a 24-21 advantage at the 7:56 mark.

Castleton went on a 13-2 in less than three minutes to turn a two-point deficit into an eight point lead, 34-26, with 5:23 left. A 6-2 run pushed the Spartans' advantage to 40-28 with less than a minute left in half before Nick Holt hit a three with just seconds left in the half to cut it to 40-31 at the break.

A 5-2 run by the Mariners to open the half trimmed the Castleton lead to 42-36 just two minutes into the second. The Spartans scored five straight but Maine Maritime wouldn't go away and closed within four, 54-48 with 12:09 remaining. The teams traded baskets over the next four minutes, and a three by Holt made it 57-53 with 7:55 left.

Copeland hit back-to-back layups to make it an eight-point game and the Spartans slowly extended their lead over the next five minutes. A layup and a three by White pushed it to a 14-point advantage at the 2:20 mark and the Spartans got a pair of late buckets from Corey Kimball and David Brandt to finish with the 74-60 victory.

The Mariners return the court Saturday, 1 p.m., at Green Mountain.

CASTLETON 74, MAINE MARITIME 60

MAINE MARITIME (4-14, 3-9 NAC)

Andy Ball 6-15 2-2 16; Nick Holt 5-7 0-0 14; Paul Campbell 4-10 0-0 11; Ben Russell 3-8 0-0 7; Logan Poirier 3-4 0-0 6; Jason Hatch 1-2 0-0 2; Tyler Chiasson 1-7 0-0 2; Jack Sherman 1-5 0-0 2; Caleb MacDonald 0-0 0-0 0; Brad Reed 0-1 0-0 0; Riley Wentworth 0-0 0-0 0; Zach Radcliffe 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 24-59 2-2 60.

CASTLETON (10-10, 8-5, NAC)

Logan White 7-15 1-2 19; Mark Comstock 4-12 6-6 14; Chad Copeland 6-12 0-0 12; Dammy Mustapha 3-6 2-3 9; Tyler Ackley 3-6 0-0 7; Denny Wilhelm 3-3 0-0 6; Rob Coloutti 1-8 0-0 3; David Brandt 1-1 0-0 2; Corey Kimball 1-1 0-0 2; Scott Therriault 0-1 0-0 0; Casey McGraw 0-0 0-0 0; Doug Krouse 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 29-65 9-11 74.

Maine Maritime................ 31 29 - 60

Castleton..................... 40 34 - 74

3-point goals--Maine Maritime 10-22 (Nick Holt 4-4; Paul Campbell 3-4; Andy Ball 2-7; Ben Russell 1-4; Brad Reed 0-1; Tyler Chiasson 0-1; Jason Hatch 0-1), Castleton 7-27 (Logan White 4-11; Rob Coloutti 1-7; Dammy Mustapha 1-3; Tyler Ackley 1-3; Scott Therriault 0-1; Mark Comstock 0-2). Fouled out--Maine Maritime-None, Castleton-None. Rebounds--Maine Maritime 30 (Paul Campbell 6), Castleton 42 (Mark Comstock 9; Chad Copeland 9). Assists--Maine Maritime 14 (Ben Russell 7), Castleton 15 (Tyler Ackley 8). Total fouls--Maine Maritime 11, Castleton 9. Technical fouls--Maine Maritime-None, Castleton-None. A-310