WILL THE THRILL: JESSUP'S CAREER NIGHT NOT ENOUGH FOR SAINTS

PAXTON, Mass.—The Anna Maria College men's basketball team moved back into the win column with a 92-87 victory over the Saints of Emmanuel College in Thursday's Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) matchup.

With the win, Anna Maria improves to 7-5 overall and 3-2 in league play, while the loss drops the Saints to 2-9 overall and 2-3 in GNAC action.

AMCAT LEADERS

Senior Patrick Bradanese (Billerica, Mass.) scored a game-high 26 points in the win for Anna Maria. Classmate Tyler Delorey (Worcester, Mass.) chipped in with 17 points, followed by junior David Jean-Louis (Miramar, Fla.) with 15 points and a team-best three three-pointers.

Senior Kyle McKissick (Charlton, Mass.) paced the AMCATS on the boards with 11 rebounds along with four assists.

EMMANUEL LEADERS

The Saints saw a career-high 23 points and seven rebounds from freshman Will Jessup (Westwood, Mass.). Senior captain Kyle Davis (Groveland, Mass.) picked up 15 points off the bench. Junior Kyle Smith (Los Angeles, Calif.) chipped in with 14 points, followed by classmate Matt Raine (Miami, Fla.) with 10 points. Smith also finished with two assists and five steals.

HOW IT HAPPENED

The first half saw six lead changes and three tied scores as neither team was able to build a safe lead. The Saints took the first lead of the day and scored nine points before Pedro Trindade (Billerica, Mass.) put the AMCATS on the board with a pair of free-throws. Emmanuel held the lead until the 7:21 mark, when Anna Maria tied the score at 25-25 on a fast-break layup by Delorey. Anna Maria would hold a one-point lead, 48-47, entering halftime.

The AMCATS maintained control of the lead for the entire second half but it was not an easy task, as Emmanuel clawed back each time Anna Maria took a comfortable lead. The AMCATS used the first 3:35 of the second frame to build a 10-point lead at 61-51, but the Saints would hold Anna Maria scoreless for nearly four minutes midway through the half to cut the deficit to one point at 69-68.

Anna Maria responded with a 9-3 run to build a seven-point margin but the Saints chipped back again, this time coming within four points, 81-77, with 3:17 left to play. The AMCATS led by 10 points, 91-81, with 37 seconds left until Smith hit back-to-back three-pointers for the Saints at the 19- and four-second marks.

FINAL COMPARISONS

Anna Maria shot at above 50 percent for the second game in-a-row with a 50.7 effort (34-67). The Saints matched the AMCATS in the first half, shooting 52.8 percent (19-36) to Anna Maria's 52.9 percent (18-34), but they dropped off in the second half to finish with a game average of 43.3 percent (29-67).

The AMCATS held a 44-35 advantage in points in the paint, a 19-12 edge in second-chance points, and a 20-15 lead in fast-break points. The Saints' bench outscored Anna Maria's, 27-21, and both teams scored 25 points off turnovers.

Anna Maria held a 42-33 advantage in rebounds, including a 16-13 edge in offensive boards.

WHAT'S NEXT

Anna Maria travels to Lasell on Saturday for a 3:00 p.m. GNAC matchup. Emmanuel is also on the road on Saturday as they travel to Mount Ida for a 1:00 p.m. league game.