Box Score COLCHESTER, Vt. – The Caldwell College men's basketball team dropped a non-league game to St. Michael's College, 83-64 Sunday afternoon at the Ross Sports Center. The result gives the Cougars a 5-9 mark on the season, while the Purple Knights improve to 4-5.

Caldwell led by as many as seven and took a 19-12 advantage following a three-pointer by sophomore guard Kevin Walker (Bayonne, NJ/St. Peter's Prep) at the 12-minute mark. The Cougars still held a 25-21 lead when St. Michael's closed out the half with a 14-7 run to take a 35-32 lead at halftime.

Three baskets from sophomore forward Michael Balkovic (Neptune, NJ/St. John Vianney) helped Caldwell start off the second half with an 8-3 run to lead 40-38. A lay-up and three-pointer by freshman guard Brian Kenny (Howell, NJ/Jackson Memorial) pushed the Cougar lead to 46-40 with 13:42 to play. But the Purple Knights took over from that point, scoring 21 straight points to grab control with a 61-46 advantage with 7:36 remaining. Caldwell never came closer than 12 points the rest of the way, as St. Michael's wrapped up its third straight win over the Cougars.

Balkovic led Caldwell with 18 points and nine rebounds while shooting 8-of-12 from the field. Kenny and sophomore guard Wyatt Polk (Haddonfield, NJ/Haddonfield) each tallied 16 points and six rebounds, while Kenny added five assists and three steals. The Cougars turned the ball over just five times and grabbed 18 offensive rebounds, but Caldwell shot just 35.6 percent from the field compared to 52.8 percent for the Purple Knights. Dom Ditlefsen led the hosts with 27 points while making 5-of-6 from three-point range.

Next up for the Cougars is a Central Atlantic Collegiate Conference home game against Holy Family University on Saturday, Jan. 5. Tip-off is set for 3:00 p.m. in the George R. Newman Center.