Jan. 16, 2010

Box Score

BOSTON, Mass. - Emerson College's smothering defense held Emmanuel College to 18 points below its average as the Lions took a Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) men's basketball game by a 63-52 margin. The loss for the Saints on Saturday afternoon dropped Emmanuel to 3-9 on the season and 2-4 in the league. Emerson improved to 8-5 overall and 5-1 in the GNAC.

The Emerson held the Saints to 36% shooting from the field and only one of ten from three point range. The Lions also grabbed a 39-31 rebounding edge. Emmanuel was held scoreless for the final 3:52 of the game. The Saints committed 30 fouls and sent the Lions to the line 35 times in the contest.

The game was close throughout as the final margin matched the largest lead of the afternoon. Emerson led from the 13:36 mark of the first half when Alex Dempsey ('12, Anchorage, Ak.) nailed a three-point shot from the top of the key to break a 10-10 tie. Emerson pushed the lead to 15-10, but Emmanuel answered with six straight points on a layup and two jump shots to take a 16-15 advantage.

A Drew Venter ('12, Boston, Mass.) three re-established a two point lead for Emerson. The Lions held the lead for 49 seconds before Isaiah Duke ('12, Albany, N.Y.) canned a jump shot to forge an 18-all tie.

Two Dempsey free throws and an Andre Fuller ('12, Troy, N.Y.) layup earned the Saints the fourth and final tie of the half. Emerson then went on an 8-0 run for a 30-22 lead at the 3:15 mark. A layup by Xavier Everson (Rochester, N.Y.) with just over a minute remaining in the stanza brought the Saints to within 31-28, and a free throw by Bryan Rouse ('10, East Greenwich, R.I.) gave Emerson a 32-28 halftime edge.

Emerson stretched the lead to 39-29 just over five minutes into the second half with Rouse scoring all seven Lion points. The lead pushed to 47-36 at the nine minute mark, and Emmanuel was able to climb back to within striking distance with free throws. Two foul shots by the Lions' Kabir Moss ('11, Chico, Calif.) gave Emerson a 49-43 lead. A Fuller jump shot and an Everson free throw made it a one possession game. Emerson's Nathan Firn ('12, Waldesboro, N.C.) countered with a layup that Everson answered with a jump shot in the paint to make the score 51-50.

A Rouse free throw set the stage for a Michael Mailhot ('13, Norwich, Conn.) layup and a 52-52 tie with 3:52 remaining. A layup by Rouse and two Tom Messinger ('11, Florence, Mass.) free throws over the next 50 seconds re-established a four point lead for the Lions who were able to seal the game with free throws.

Rouse led all scorers and rebounders in the game with 22 points and nine assists. Messinger added 11 for the Lions and Moss had seven rebounds. Duke was the only Saint in double figures with 10 points, although 11 different players scored for Emmanuel.

Emerson (8-5, 5-1 GNAC ) will next host Johnson & Wales University in a Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Day matinee at 12:00 noon. Emmanuel (3-9, 2-4 GNAC) plays at Lasell College at 8:00pm that evening. Both games are GNAC contests.

- Courtesy of Emerson College Sports Information