MEN'S BASKETBALL FALLS TO EMERSON IN SEASON-OPENER, 76-64

WESTON, Mass. -  The Emmanuel College men's basketball team dropped the opening game of the 2015-16 campaign Friday evening, falling to Emerson College 76-64 in the opening round of the 2015 Coaches vs. Cancer Greater Boston Shootout played at Regis College. The Saints drop to 0-1 on the year while the win moves the Lions to 1-0.

Emerson never trailed in the contest, jumping out to a 3-0 lead on a three-ball by senior Tyson Hallowell (Lincoln, Mass.).  The squads would trade hoops with senior center Kyle Davis (Groveland, Mass.) scoring his first basket of the game to make it 6-4 before Emerson went on a 10-0 run to take control of the action with a 16-6 advantage.

The Lions would hold a double-digit lead for the majority of the first half but the Saints kept it right around a 10 point deficit and with under four to play in the stanza got it back to single digits, cutting the lead to six with a three by sophomore forward Alex Minetti (Wakefield, R.I.) to make it 34-28 with 3:36 to play. Unfortunately for the Saints it would be the closest they would come the rest of the night as the Lions ended the first half on an 11-2 run to take a 45-30 lead into the locker room.

Out of the second half gate, Emerson continued to build on its lead as senior guard Michael Thorpe (Newton, Mass.) pushed the margin to 21 points with a layup to give the Lions a comfortable 52-31 lead with just over 18 minutes remaining in regulation.

Over the next eight minutes, the Saints put together their best basketball of the evening with a 19-7 surge to cut the lead to 57-50 following a pair of free throws by senior forward John Clay (Westport, Mass.).

Trailing by seven, Emmanuel put together a strong defensive stand on the ensuing possession of Clay's free throws but Thorpe nailed a three to beat the shot clock, killing the Saints rally and putting the Lions back on top by double-digits at 60-50.

Emmanuel was never able to muster a final charge allowing Emerson to hold on for the 76-64 win.

Emerson shot 51.2% from the field in the win compared to the Saints 27.4%. The Lions converted 12 three-point shots compared to just two by Emmanuel.

Thorpe led all scorers with 26 points while senior center Austin Pinckney (Miami, Fla.) was a force down low with 21 points and a game-high 18 rebounds.

For the Saints, Davis posted 20 points and 13 rebounds before fouling out of the contest. Clay also registered a double-double with 18 points and 10 rebounds, going 7-for-7 from the free throw line.

Next up, Emmanuel will take on Wentworth Institute of Technology tomorrow at 3:00 PM in the consolation game of the Coaches vs. Cancer Greater Boston Shootout. The Leopards fell to the host Pride in overtime, 64-62, setting up a championship meeting between Emerson and Regis tomorrow at 5:00 PM.