Plymouth, N.H. – Castleton's bid for a comeback victory came up just short after cutting the Panther lead to one in the final minute, as the Spartans fell to Plymouth St. 83-80 in Foley Gym on Tuesday evening. 

Logan White drilled a three from the top of the arc with just 44 seconds to pull Castleton within one, 81-80. However on the Panthers' next possession Shomari Morgan made a baseline jumper with only seven seconds left and the shot clock about to expire. The Spartans inbounded the ball but were unable to get a shot off from downtown for the potential tie before time expired. 

Castleton drops to 1-2 with the loss while the Panthers improve to 4-1 on the year and snap a two-game skid against the Spartans. 

Plymouth St. controlled the paint on Tuesday, outrebounding the Spartans 46-37, including a 23-14 edge on the offensive glass. They also shot 38 free throws compared to eight for the visitors and forced 17 turnovers on 16 steals. The Panthers shot 41.8 percent from the floor while Castleton shot 44.8 percent and made 13 of 32 three-point attempts. 

Rob Coloutti poured in a career-high 22 points off the bench, making five of nine shots from beyond the arc, and added two steals and two rebounds. Carnelius Green added 18 points, 14 rebounds, three assists and two steals. White finished the game with 16 points, 14 of which game in the second half. 

Uche Nwokeji led Plymouth St. with 19 points, 16 rebounds and two steals while Curtis Arsenault added 17 points and nine rebounds. Petey Skevas orchestrated the offense with nine assists and six points. 

The two teams traded baskets over the opening 4:30, with a layup by Alex Homkey tying it 9-9. Six straight points by the Panthers made it 15-9, though Rob Coloutti cut the lead in half with a triple at 13:58. Castleton closed within three, 20-17, on buckets by Cosrick McDonald and Alex Homkey but Plymouth St. pushed it back to six at 9:10. 

A 5-2 run by the Spartans over the next minute closed the Panther lead to three, 28-25 with 7:48 left. However five straight by Plymouth St. pushed its advantage to 33-25. Castleton brought it back to five multiple times over the final five minutes, but the Panthers went into the break with a 43-26 lead. 

In the second half Castleton closed within six multiple times, including a three from Coloutti to make it 54-48 at 15:00. The Plymouth St. lead fluctuated from 10-6 over the next few minutes before a 9-0 run by the Spartans cut it to 66-63, prompting a Panther time out with 8:34 left. 

A layup by Green closed the lead to 66-65, however, Plymouth St. responded with seven straight to grab a 73-65 advantage with 5:54 remaining. A White three cut the gap to five and the two teams traded baskets until another triple from White made it 79-77 with just 1:32 left. Arsenault hit a pair of three throws on the Panthers next possession before White followed with another shot from beyond the arc to close the score to one, 81-80, with 44 seconds left. 

Alex Homkey added seven points, four rebounds and two steals off the bench while Casey McGraw scored six points in his first career start. 

The Spartans return to action on Dec. 3, when they travel to face Middlebury at 7:30 pm.