CLINTON, N.Y. – Senior Luke Matarazzo and sophomore Mike Boornazian each scored 16 points, but Bates College men's basketball fell at Hamilton College, 88-64, on Saturday afternoon at the Scott Field House.

The Continentals (13-9, 4-4 NESCAC) held a 45-31 lead at halftime and extended their lead to as large as 26 points in the second half over the Bobcats (11-11, 1-7 NESCAC).

For the hosts, sophomore Matt Hart (Orchard Park, N.Y.) scored a game-high 17 points on 6-of-12 shooting while junior Peter Kazickas (Amagansett, N.Y.) netted 15 points on 7-of-7 shooting off the bench.

Sophomore Ajani Santos (Bronx, N.Y.) tallied 13 points and six rebounds in 15 minutes, senior Greg Newton (Barrington, R.I.) posted 11 points and seven assists, and junior Bradley Gifford (Brooklyn, N.Y.) grabbed a team-best nine rebounds.

For Bates, Boornazian (Portland, Conn.) converted on 3-of-4 shots from 3-point distance and corralled nine rebounds. Matarazzo (Shelton, Conn.) sank 8-of-10 shots from the foul line.

Punch followed counterpunch in the game's first nine minutes as neither team gained a lead larger than three points. After Santos made an early basket, junior Billy Selmon (Atlanta, Ga.) countered with a 3-pointer to make it 10-9. Once Hart connected on a jump shot in transition, Boornazian responded with a 3-pointer on the next possession to tie the game at 21-21 with 11:49 left in the half.

From there, the Continentals used an 8-1 spurt to capture a 29-22 edge at the 7:48 mark. Bates cut its deficit to 32-30 after a layup from first-year Malcolm Delpeche (Wilmington, Del.), but Hamilton closed the opening frame on a 13-1 run to take a 45-31 lead into the locker room.

The teams traded baskets over the first several minutes of the second half with Boornazian's second 3-pointer of the stanza cutting the Continentals' margin to 55-43 with 15:38 left. Hamilton then went on a 14-4 streak to gain a 22-point, 69-47 advantage with 11 minutes to play.

Hamilton built a lead as large as 26 points at 88-62 while Bates could get no closer than 20 points over the game's final 12 minutes.

Next, Bates hosts Bowdoin on Friday at 8 p.m. while Hamilton plays at Wesleyan on Friday at 8 p.m.