Worcester, MA - The Lancers were host to the Lasell Lasers and both teams came into the contest with above .500 records with the Lancers being 5-4 and Lasell being 6-4. A three-game winning streak was on the line for the Lancers after two hard-fought wins versus Emerson and Regis.
FINAL: LANCERS: 76 LASELL: 63
RECAP:
FIRST HALF:
The duo of Ryan Rubenskas and Aaron Nkrumah (Worcester, MA) opened the scoring for the Lancers. The first-year wing Jaylen Kirkland (Gardner, MA) also found his footing in the game with a great driving layup. Lancers were down by three when the first timeout of the game was used. 7-10 as a scoreline showed signs of the match potentially being high-scoring. The first subs of the game were junior Brandon Goris (Bronx, N.Y.) and junior guard Subbi Nkugwa (Chelmsford, MA). Both combo guards were looking to add some high energy into the match. A three-minute scoreless drought was ended by Nkugwa with an elbow three-point shot. A couple inside shots for both teams saw the scoreline be 17-18 with just about 10 minutes left to go in the first half. Graduate student Sam Davies (Worcester, MA) and junior forward Johnny Annan (Worcester, MA) made cameo appearances and made good impacts within the opening minutes of their coming on.
Davies went 3 for 4 for his free throws that allowed the Lancers to get into the bonus by drawing three fouls. Nkrumah's 18-footer caused a Lasell timeout. 25-20 with 8 minutes left in the game. A Nkugwa three-pointer after two steals on the defense end made the Brissette court get a little louder. A 10-point run was ended by a Lasell corner three. During the run, Nkrumah had 10 total Points, rebounds, and assists in a 2-minute span. The last possession went to the Lancers. A pick-n-roll action led to an and-1. After the final bucket of the first half, the scoreline would read 46-27 in favor of the Lancers.
SECOND HALF:
The second half would open with both teams trading threes. Kirkland would hit two triples and provide great defense in the opening minutes of the half. 56-36 would be the score after the opening six minutes of the match. The Lancers would give away a couple of cheap offensive rebounds allowing Lasell to hang in the game. The defensive effort was improved compared to the lackluster performance of the opening minutes of the first half. A 7-0 run for Lasell would see the Lancers use their first full timeout of the second half. A floater from sophomore forward Shawn Hebert (Ayer, MA) would end the scoreless run the Lancers had. Graduate student Zion Hendrix (Charlotte, N.C.) would get his first bucket of the day with a clinical layup off a pick-and-roll. Hendrix not long after would find Hebert for a corner three. Last 2 minutes there would be a mass substitution as the starters and other key contributors from the game would check out. The Lancers would hold on to their lead and win 76-63.
With the win, the Lancers record improves to (6-4, 0-0 MASCAC) while Lasell drops to (6-5, 0-0 GNAC).
The next game for the Lancers will be against Roanoke at the Cregger Invitational hosted by Roanoke in Salem, Virginia December 29th with a 12 p.m. tip -off.