Box Score
BOSTON, Mass. – With a 3-point play by Quadry Allen (White Castle, La.) and a game clinching lay-up by Dan Powers (Westwood, Mass.), men's basketball earned a huge 88-83 non-conference win over Fitchburg State University Tuesday evening in the Clark Athletic Center Gymnasium.
THE BASICS
UMass Boston 88, Fitchburg State University 83
UMass Boston (2-1, 0-0 Little East Conference)
Fitchburg State University (3-3, 0-0 MASCAC)
HOW IT HAPPENED
Even at 83-83 with 1:03 left in regulation a missed lay-up by Fitchburg State's Jaleel Bell was quickly converted into an Allen and-1 to put the Beacons up 86-83 with 35 seconds left. On their next possession, the Falcons turned the ball over with Powers coming up with the huge steal. The junior forward would then go the length of the court, and laid the ball in for the game clinching basket to make it 86-83.
Powers carried the Beacons to the non-conference win with a career high 19 points and 14 rebounds. He also had three steals and four assists in 33 minutes of playing time. For Allen, his game deciding three-point play capped off an eight point night for the senior guard, which also consisted of two steals and one assist.
Leading the Beacons offense overall was senior guard Michael Campbell (Boston, Mass.) who dropped in 24 points, while also handing out seven assists, and picking-up four steals and 12 rebounds. The Boston native was 10-for-16 from the field, 1-for-1 from behind the arc. He was also 3-for-9 at the line.
The Beacons held a 45-34 advantage on the glass, and combined for five blocked shots, with two going to Gabriel Pereira (Brockton, Mass.), who also had 12 points and five boards. UMass Boston shot a solid 48.8% from the floor, while holding the Falcons to just 43.9% on the night.
On the night the Beacons were solid in the paint as they dropped in 40 points, while their bench contributed 30 points to their huge non-conference victory.
For the Falcons, four of the starting five finished in double-figures, with Bell leading the team with 16 points, followed by Josh Bosworth who had 15 points. Givaughn Jones led Fitchburg on the glass with seven boards, and also had 14 points.
After taking a 40-38 lead into the halftime break, the Beacons and the Falcons battled back-and-forth on the scoreboard for the final 20 minutes of play. The Falcons managed to gain the early advantage, but the Beacons would gain some serious momentum at the halfway point of the second half, as they went on a quick 5-0 run to take a 66-60 lead. Fitchburg would manage to chip away at the six-point deficit, and managed to take a three point lead, three time different times with less than 6:21 to play in regulation.
The Beacons would retake the lead on a Campbell lay-up with 3:49 to play to make it a one-point affair. A lay-in by Kwame Lee with 1:03 to play would tie the score at 83-83, as he ended the night with 14 points and three blocked shots. The basket from Lee would be the final one of the night for the Falcons, as the Beacons got their huge back-to-back plays from Allen and Powers to seal the victory.
BY THE NUMBERS
- Powers scored 11 of his 19 points in the second half and also had eight rebounds
- All-time the Beacons lead the series with Fitchburg State 23-12
- The Beacons have now won three straight over the Falcons dating back to 2013
- Tuesday's win marked the first home victory for first year head coach Jason Harris
- In total there was 21 lead changes and the score was tied a total of 12 times
WHO'S NEXT
The Beacons will host Vermont Tech this Friday at 4 p.m. on the first day of the 31st Annual Harbor Invitational. In game two Trinity College (Conn.) will face the University of Maine Fort Kent at 6 p.m. in the Clark Gymnasium. The consolation and championship games are scheduled for Saturday at 1 and 3 p.m. respectively.
