Worcester, MA- Worcester State Men's Basketball (9-7, 3-0) returned to MASCAC action this evening after a tight battle with the #6 team in the nation, the Trinity Bantams. The lancers hit the road in their bid to extend their MASCAC success to 16 straight wins with a trip to Salem State (8-6, 2-1) to take on the Vikings.

Final

Worcester State: 80

Salem State: 69

While it may have taken over a minute in the first to get the scoring going for both teams, once Worcester started with a three-point drop from first year Jaylen Kirkland (Gardner, MA), they could not be slowed down. Salem did cut into the action, closing the gap down to a single point with 14 minutes left in the half, but a graduate student Zion Hendrix (Charlotte, NC) three would start the Lancers back on an offensive roll. Free throws from senior Sam Dion (Barre, MA) , a lay-up for junior Brandon Goris (Bronx, NY) and a tip-in for junior Johnny Annan (Worcester, MA) would cause Worcester's lead to extend to eight. A five minute stretch that started with just eight minutes in the half, would have the Lancers offense explode, going for 14-3 run that would push their lead to 24 points. Salem would use the final three minutes of the half working to stem the onslaught but a showing from juniors Aaron Nkrumah, with a dunk and layup, and Nate Bangandozou (Worcester, MA) added a layup and one of his own for Worcester to carry a 26 point lead into the break.

Nkrumah would head into the break with a team leading 14 points adding four rebounds. 

The 20 minutes of the second half were geared up to see Worcester hold their offensive drive and continue to find success but on the offensive and defensive ends of the ball. Senior Ryan Rubenskas (Bridgewater, MA) would get the second half scoring started for Worcester with a dunk that would set the energy for the team in the half. Nkrumah and Kirkland would alternate with the Vikings attack to keep the game differential at 28 points in the opening minutes, with Dion and Hendrix also contributing to preserve the gap. With 13 minutes left in the second, the Vikings would find an additional burst of energy, working the gap down to 21 points, forcing a Lancers timeout. The Vikings would come out of the timeout prepared to continue the battle, forcing two quick turnovers and a foul to see the lead chipped down to 16. Rubenskas' free throws and Bangandozou lay-up would see Worcester begin to right the ship, pushing the lead back to 18. The last half of the second half would see Salem and Worcester up their intensity, going shot for shot as each team worked to grab a pivotal conference win. Salem would work the gap down to just 11 points, but with Worcester pulling from the bench for defense support, they would seal the game with a final score of 80-69.

Rubenskas would lead the Lancers on the night, recording another double-double, with 19 points and 11 rebounds, while Nkrumah would add another 17 points and six rebounds for the Lancers 16th straight MASCAC victory.

Worcester now advances to (10-7, 4-0) while Salem moves to (8-7, 2-2) as each continues their conference action this Saturday, January 20th, when Salem hosts Fitchburg State and Worcester travels to Framingham State for a 2pm match up.