NORTON, MA (January 2, 2025) – The Beacons' men's basketball team hit the road to Norton, Massachusetts, on Thursday evening for a non-conference matchup against the Wheaton College Lyons. In the absence of top scorers Cameron Perkins (Danbury, Mass.) and Xavier McKenzie (Lowell, Mass.), captain Emanuel Zayas put the offense on his shoulders with a team-high 21 points and six assists in 38 minutes of action.

The Basics:
UMass Boston 70 – 77 Wheaton College
UMass Boston: 6-4 (2-1 Little East Conference)
Wheaton College: 5-6 (0-2 New England Women's and Men's Athletic Conference)

How it Happened:

• The Lyons added two quick layups to begin the game before Zayas struck from downtown off the dish by junior Hector Perez (Easton, Mass.) for the Beacons' first points of the night. Defensive intensity saw a two-minute scoreless drought on both sides, relieved by senior forward Ish Fofana (Boston, Mass.) with an offensive putback layup to make it a one-point game in the early embers of the first half. Just under eight minutes remaining in the first half, the Lyons were able to expand their lead to 10 from the charity stripe. Consecutive buckets from Zayas, Mark Barrett (Brookline, Mass.), and Raphel Laurent (Peabody, Mass.) brought the Beacs all the way level, . Junior forward, Tyler Victor (Brockton, Mass.) extended the Beacons' lead to three, the largest of the half before a flurry of fastbreak layups and free throws to end the half saw Wheaton retake a four-point lead heading into the break.
• Zayas opened the door for the Beacons offensively to begin the second half, answering the call when the offense needed a spark. A steal by first-year Davon Sanders (Mansfield, Mass.) and score from Barrett would cut the Lyons lead to two, the smallest of the half, before Wheaton would separate themselves on the scoreboard with a 10-point run. The Beacons could keep up offensively with the Lyons but could not claw their way out of this deficit. Just when Wheaton approached a double-digit lead, the Beacons would find a way, and bring it back to within three to five points. This would happen at several moments in the second half. The Beacons were down, but would not go out without a fight. With under three minutes remaining in the game, Laurent successfully converted the and-one to make it a three-point contest and a one-possession game. A dagger three-pointer from one of the Lyons' top scorers would be the final, putting them up seven points as time expired, UMass Boston fell short on the road.

By The Box:

• Zayas led all scorers with 21 points (7-15 FG, 5-11 3PT, 2-2 FT) to couple with a team-high six assists and two steals.
• Barrett had the green light in Perkins and McKenzie's absence, recording a season-high 3P attempts, knocking down two of his six attempts from outside. Barrett also assisted on the glass with five rebounds.
• Sanders continues to excel when given the chance. In a season-high 31 minutes and his first collegiate start, Sanders contributed a team-high nine rebounds, seven points, and two steals.
• Laurent scored 13 points and shot 50% from the field (5-10 FG) while raking in nine rebounds in 28 minutes off the bench.

Who's Next:

• Following Zayas' 21-point performance in Norton, he is now 11 points away (989 total) from being the 18^th player in UMass Boston basketball program history to achieve 1,000 total career points. With an average of 14.6 PPG, expect Zayas to potentially hit the feat against the Beacons' next opponent, the Salem State Vikings, on their home court of the Clark Gymnasium this weekend on Saturday, January 4, at 12:00 p.m. noontime.
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