2013-14 MEN'S BASKETBALL SEASON IN REVIEW

BOSTON, Mass. – The Emmanuel College men's basketball team wrapped up the 2013-14 season with a 6-19 overall record, going 4-14 in Great Northeast Athletic Conference play. The Saints just missed out on postseason play due to a head-to-head tiebreaker for the No. 8 seed in the GNAC tournament.

The Saints opened the year with a pair of highly contested losses in the Emerson College Tip-Off Tournament, falling to Wentworth and then Emerson. The biggest loss for Emmanuel on the year may have taken place in the first half of play against Wentworth when junior center Kyle Davis (Groveland, Mass.) broke a bone in his hand, sidelining him for the remainder of the year.

Emmanuel notched its' first win of the year right before the Thanksgiving break, topping Westfield State University on the road, 74-65. Freshman forward James Sullivan (Wethersfield, Conn.) scored a team-high 18 points while junior Philkwan Tate (Bloomfield, Conn.) added 16 points and 12 rebounds for the double-double.

December was not kind to the squad as the Saints posted an 0-4 record to head into the semester break with an overall mark of 1-7. Unfortunately for EC, more bad news came over the break as the Saints lost Tate for academic reasons. Tate had been the team's leading scorer and rebounder throughout the first semester.

The team pulled together and opened the new year with a much needed 82-76 victory over Fisher College behind a combined 46 point showing from freshman guard Kyle Smith (Los Angeles, Calif.) and junior guard Jordan DeMario (Aliso Viejo, Calif.).

Following a three-game losing streak to GNAC foes, Emmanuel picked up its first conference victory of the year with a January 15 road win over Rivier University. Smith led four EC players in double-figures with 18 points in the 69-57 win while senior guard Josh Welles (Philadelphia, Pa.) chipped in with 13 points.

Despite playing well in a home & home series against Anna Maria, the Saints dropped both contests before notching their second GNAC victory of the season over Suffolk University, 94-88. In their highest scoring game of the year, six players scored double figures including 18 from DeMario, 15 from senior guard Brandon Jones (Windsor, Conn.), 14 from sophomore forward John Clay (Westport, Mass.) and 10 each from Sullivan, Welles and freshman center Lyndon Harewood (Brooklyn, N.Y.).

Over the next three weeks, Emmanuel would drop six consecutive games including a heartbreaker to the eventual GNAC runner's up in Saint Joseph's College (ME), losing 72-70 on the road.

Facing elimination from tournament play, the Saints hunkered down to register back-to-back wins for the first time all season. On Feb. 15, EC topped Rivier, 67-62, as Clay and Welles both posted 14-point outings. That weekend in a must-win game against Suffolk, Emmanuel cruised to an 85-75 win behind five players in double figures. Smith led the way with 19 followed by Jones who scored 16.

Heading into the final game of the year, the Saints could lock in a GNAC playoff spot with a road win over Albertus Magnus, something that no DIII team had done all year. The Saints fell, 95-78, and had it as close as three points with under eight minutes remaining. With the loss, their playoff destiny was out of their hands and up to result in the Norwich vs. Suffolk game. A victory by the host Rams would punch the Saints ticket into the playoffs but the Cadets came away with a 75-70 win and beat out the Saints for the final playoff spot due to a head-to-head tiebreaker from previous meetings.

Despite missing the playoffs, the Saints had many positives during the year including five GNAC Rookie of the Week nods between Sullivan (3) and Smith (2).

EC bids farewell to seniors Cadeem Lewis (Bronx, N.Y.), Alex Myers (Long Beach, Calif.), Steve Bankert (Clinton, N.Y.), Jones and Welles.