Wheaton's last-tick three misses the mark as Lyons lose at Coast Guard, 60-57

February 6, 2008

NEW LONDON, CT- Sophomore Ben Stehle's (Newton, MA/Newton South) deep three-pointer with 1.2 seconds on the clock was off the mark Wednesday night, as Wheaton College suffered a 60-57 loss to the United States Coast Guard Academy in New England Women's and Men's Athletic Conference (NEWMAC) men's basketball action in Merriman Gymnasium.

The Lyons, whose 57 points were a season low, had their two-game win streak snapped in falling to 12-7 overall and 3-5 in the league. Coast Guard put an end to its three-game losing skid while improving to 12-6 and 3-5.

Both teams struggled to find a groove offensively early, as the Bears and Lyons each missed their opening five field goal attempts. Coast Guard junior Craig Johnson (Medford, OR/South Medford) provided the game's first points 2:21 in, while Wheaton knotted the game on a pair of free throws from senior Brent DiGiovanna (Hanover, MA/Hanover) at 16:33. The visitors didn't score their initial basket until the 15:09 mark, when freshman Anthony Coppola (Watertown, MA/Watertown) evened the score at four.

Two more DiGiovanna freebies knotted the score for a third time with 13:31 remaining in the first half, but the Bears scored six straight points during a 1:08 span. Stehle converted a traditional three-point play to bring the Lyons within three, and Wheaton eventually got as close as 17-15 on a bucket from freshman Bobby Perry (East Providence, RI/East Providence).

A pair of free throws at 6:38 by junior Nick Michel (Hyde Park, MA/Boston Latin School) made the score 22-19 in Coast Guard's favor, but the Lyons didn't score for nearly three minutes after that, helping give the hosts a 29-19 lead with four minutes to go. Coppola hit a three to narrow Wheaton's gap to seven at 3:44 before the visitors only scored four more points prior to halftime, as the Lyons entered the break facing a 36-26 deficit following Stehle's bucket to beat the buzzer.

The second half started eerily similar to the first, as the teams combined to miss their first seven shots. The Blue and White trailed by as many as 14 points until a basket from senior Jake Otto (Glastonbury, CT/Glastonbury) at 17:00 put the Lyons on the board. Trailing 58-49 approaching the five-minute mark, Wheaton scored seven unanswered points, including five from Coppola, to close the gap to two.

The Lyons held the Bears to just one field goal in the final 7:46, a two by senior Al Sowers (Monrovia, MD/Saint John's School at Prospect Hall) with 1:31 on the clock, but Wheaton was unable to force overtime. Coast Guard was credited with a block on the Blue and White's possession after Sowers' bucket and, following a Bear miss, the Lyons found themselves at the free throw line with 27 ticks left. Stehle made 1-of-2 from the charity stripe to make it 60-57.

Wheaton intentionally fouled on Coast Guard's next trip down and, thanks to the Bears missing the front end of a one-and-one, the visitors had a chance to tie. A DiGiovanna three with seven seconds left fell short, but Stehle came up with a huge offensive rebound, allowing the Lyons to draw up one final play.

Coppola led Wheaton with 17 points and five rebounds, while Stehle posted his first career double-double with 10 points and 10 rebounds. Four other Lyons had six points, as Wheaton finished shooting 37.0 percent from the floor and just 26.3 percent from beyond the arc.

Sowers led all scorers with 20 points, while senior Jeff Prebeck (Columbus, IN/Naval Academy Prep) had 14 points and 14 boards. Johnson finished with 12 rebounds. Coast Guard committed just five turnovers.

The Lyons will return home for the third time in four games this Saturday when they host league foe Babson College in Emerson Gymnasium at 2:00 p.m.

This page is maintained by Scott Dietz. Last updated on 2/7/08.
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