Lyons complete conference slate with 73-57 setback at 13th-ranked WPI

February 15, 2007

WORCESTER, MA- The Wheaton College men's basketball team finished up its New England Women's and Men's Athletic Conference (NEWMAC) regular season slate with a 73-57 loss to nationally-ranked Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI) on Thursday evening in Harrington Auditorium.

The Lyons, who are 10-13 overall and 3-9 in the conference, will await word on their NEWMAC Tournament seed - they will either be sixth or seventh - as the remaining six conference teams complete their league slates on Saturday. WPI, which is ranked 13th in this week's D3hoops.com national poll, moved to 20-2 and 10-1, clinching at least a share of its fourth straight NEWMAC regular season title.

After the Engineers scored the game's first nine points by 15:32 of the opening half, Wheaton scored eight straight, as sophomore Nick Michel (Hyde Park, MA/Boston Latin School) dropped in the final six on three buckets during a 50-second span. WPI went back up by a 16-12 count, but Lyon junior Eric Johnston (South Windsor, CT/East Catholic) and freshman Jaxon Leo (Leesburg, VA/New Hampton School) hit consecutive jumpers to knot the game, and Michel laid in another basket at 7:40 to give Wheaton an 18-16 edge, which proved to be the Blue and White's lone lead of the evening.

The Lyons' advantage was short lived, as WPI senior Ryan Cain (Webster, MA/Saint John's) tied the game just 12 seconds later to spark a 10-0 run that took 2:06 to complete. A Michel jumper with 3:53 remaining in the period brought Wheaton within 26-22, but Cain capped an 11-0 run with a fast-break lay-up at 1:37, and WPI took a 41-27 advantage into the locker room.

WPI led by as many as 20 points early in the second half, when the Engineers carried a 53-33 lead. Wheaton attempted to stay within striking distance but came no closer than 13 points the rest of the way. After shooting 52.0 percent in the first half, the Lyons connected on only 36.4 percent of their second-period shots. The Blue and White shot 43.1 percent for the game, while WPI shot 45.6 percent.

Michel tallied a team-high 13 points on 6-of-7 shooting, turning in a team-best six boards. Junior Jake Otto (Glastonbury, CT/Glastonbury) went 5-of-8 for 10 points, while senior Brian Zukowski (Dracut, MA/Dracut) had nine points and five assists. Sophomore Kristopher Pedra (Avon, CT/Avon) tacked on nine points in 14 minutes.

Cain had a game-high 28 points, as he shot 8-of-14 from the field, including 5-of-7 from beyond the arc, and hit all seven free throw attempts. Sophomore Adam Lirette (Dover, NH/Dover) collected 16 points and six assists, while junior Ryan Bourque (Nashua, NH/Nashua) had 10 points and eight rebounds. Sophomore Jerome Kirkland (Boston, MA/John D. O'Bryant) dished out seven assists.

Wheaton completes its regular season slate on Saturday, as the Lyons host Roger Williams University. Zukowski, the team's lone senior, will be honored prior to the 2:00 p.m. tip.

This page is maintained by Scott Dietz. Last updated on 2/16/07.
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