Dec. 4, 2008

Box Score

BOSTON, Mass. - Emmanuel's junior guard Mike Jackson (New York, N.Y.) drained a deep three-pointer as time expired to lift the Saints Men's Basketball Team to a 56-54 victory over the visiting Bobcats of Bates College on Thursday night. With the win, the Saints improved to 2-2 on the season, while the Bobcats fell to 3-2 overall.

Emmanuel jumped out to an early lead over Bates and held the advantage for the entire first half. The Saints' defense forced the Bobcats to shoot a dismal 22.2% (6 for 27) from the field in the first half. Emmanuel had a balanced attack in the first half with 10 of 12 players scoring points early in game. The Saints took a 26-23 lead into the break with freshman guard Isaiah Duke (Albany, NY) leading the squad with 6 points in the opening stanza.

The Bobcats clawed their way back in the second half and opened the period going on a 4-0 run. Bates quickly jumped out to a 27-26 lead on a made lay-up by sophomore forward Brian Ellis (Braintree, Mass.). Duke scored just seconds later and put the Saints back on top (28-27) with 17:46 to play. Bates then rattled off eight unanswered points and took over a 36-28 lead with 15:18 remaining. The Bobcats' shooting improved tremendously later in the game, as they shot 48.1% (13-27) in the second half of play.

Bates held the lead throughout the majority of the second half and did not relinquish the advantage until the two-minute mark. After a bench technical called on the Bobcats, Mike Jackson netted two free throws to put Emmanuel up, 51-50, with 2:09 on the clock. Bates' junior guard Chris Wilson (Brewer, Maine) hit two from the foul line to swing the lead back to the Bobcats (52-51) with 1:45 to go.

Jackson then nailed a jumper from the left side with 1:20 to play, putting the Saints up 53-52. After an Emmanuel foul and two subsequent Bobcat free throws by sophomore forward Nick Schmiemann (Weymouth, Mass.), the Saints trailed 54-53. Emmanuel was able to secure three possessions and had three good looks in the final minute of play. After two missed jumpers, the Saints were forced to foul.

Senior forward Mack Spellman (Clinton, N.Y.) grabbed the board on the missed front end of Bates' one-and-one and quickly outletted the ball to Jackson sprinting up the left sideline. The junior took two quick dribbles before letting it fly from well behind the arc. Jackson released the ball with 0:01 on the clock and drained the only tri-fecta of the night, giving Emmanuel a 56-54 victory over the Bobcats.

Jackson took over the game, scoring all seven of Emmanuel's points in the final two minutes of the contest. Jackson and Duke led Emmanuel with 11 points apiece. Jackson also hauled in 8 rebounds, dished out a team-high 4 assists, and collected 3 steals in a solid 29-minute effort. Senior guard Rob Williams-Hinton (Oak Park, Mich.) added 10 points, while sophomore forward Chris Puzacke (Torrington, Conn.) chipped in with 8 points in the win. Spellman collected 8 rebounds to help the Saints.

Bates was led by Ellis' game-high 16 points on 7 for 11 shooting. Schmiemann added 9 points, hitting 7 of his 8 free throw attempts for Bates. Wilson struggled from the floor, but pulled in a team-high 9 boards in the effort.

Both teams will play in their conference openers this weekend. Bates will travel to Bowdoin for a 4pm start in the NESCAC opener, while Emmanuel will host Rivier in a 1pm tip for the GNAC opener.