Feb. 21, 2012

Box Score

NEWTON, Mass. - The 5th-seeded Emmanuel College Men's Basketball Team fell to 4th-seeded Lasell College, 80-73, in the quarterfinal round of the Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) Tournament on Tuesday night. The Lasers outscored the visitors 40-33 in the second half and took advantage of a 42-27 rebounding margin to defeat the Saints.

Senior forward Javon Williams (Mattapan, Mass.) scored a game-high 25 points to go along with 9 rebounds and three blocks to lead the way for Lasell. Williams had plenty of help, as sophomore forward Earnest McNeil (Boston, Mass.) posted his first double-double of the season, scoring 11 points and a team-high 12 rebounds. Sean Bertanza (Seymour, Conn.) and Nate DiSessa(Westfield, Mass.) chipped in with 11 points apiece in the win.

Emmanuel had a balanced scoring attack with five players scoring in double figures. Junior guard Xavier Everson (Rochester, N.Y.) led the way with 15 points on 7-10 shooting. Sophomore guard Brandon Jones (Windsor, Conn.) scored 14 points and was a perfect 5-5 from the floor. Senior forward Isaiah Duke (Albany, N.Y.) added 13 points and 5 rebounds. Sophomore forward Theo Robinson (Springfield, Mass.) notched his 18th double-double of the year with 11 points and 12 rebounds, while Connor Morgan (Chepachet, R.I.) chipped in with 11 points. The Saints shot 50% from the floor (30-60), but just 40% (7-17) from the free throw line on the night.

Emmanuel made their first five shots from the floor to build an 11-6 lead just four minutes into the contest. The five point advantage was the biggest lead for either team in the closely contested opening 20 minutes, which featured seven ties and four lead changes. Emmanuel shot 17-30 from the field in the first half, and the Lasers were 14-26 from the floor.

Lasell opened the second half with a 6-0 run, using a layup by Williams and consecutive baskets by Bertanza to take a 46-40 lead. Emmanuel cut the lead to 48-45 following a Jones layup, but Lasell answered with a 10-0 run to build a 58-45 lead. A three-pointer by Morgan and a layup by Jones cut the hosts' advantage to 58-50 with 12:50 remaining.

A transition layup by Williams and four-straight points by DiSessa gave Lasell their biggest lead of the game at 64-50, but Emmanuel would respond.

The Saints used an 11-2 run, capped by a Michael Mailhot (Norwich, Conn.) three-pointer to make it a 66-61 lead with 5:28 remaining. A layup by Williams helped Lasell slow the Saints momentum, but a Duke steal and layup, followed by tip in by Robinson cut the Lasell advantage to 68-65 with 2:57 to play.

DiSessa found Frank Apisa (Branchburgh, N.J.) for a layup to put the Lasers back up by five, but Duke answered leaving Lasell with a 70-67 lead with 1:11 on the clock. Williams made another big play for Lasell, scoring on a drive with :54 remaining and converted the free throw for an old fashioned three-point play putting Lasell back up by six, 73-67.

DiSessa came up with a deflection and steal, and then converted two free throws to give the Lasers a 75-67 advantage with only 45 seconds on the clock. Morgan hit a three-pointer with :37 seconds left, but the Saints comeback fell short as Lasell converted five of six free throws down the stretch to close out the game.

The loss dropped Emmanuel to 12-14 on the season, while Lasell improved to 13-13. The Lasers will travel to New Haven, Connecticut to face the top-seeded Falcons of Albertus Magnus College on Thursday for GNAC semifinals. The Falcons defeated 8th-seeded Emerson College tonight, 82-58.

- COURTESY OF LASELL COLLEGE SPORTS INFORMATION