SAINTS HANDLE MUSTANGS IN 13th GNAC WIN
Feb. 6, 2008
Newton Centre, MA - The Emmanuel Men's Basketball Team notched its 13th conference win on Wednesday night in a 93-79 defeat of Mount Ida College. The game featured 3 lead changes and 7 ties, before the Saints came away with the 14-point victory.
The first half was intense with Mount Ida maintaining the early advantage up 16-14 in the opening seven minutes. Emmanuel would take over the lead (18-16) only for the Mustangs to take it back by six at 24-18 with 11:02 showing in the first half. Mount Ida remained on top for the next 120 ticks until the Saints bottomed a NBA range three-pointer by junior guard Rob Williams-Hinton (Oak Park, MI). The tri-fecta put EC up 29-27 with just nine minutes to go until the break. The score would be knotted three more times with Emmanuel sustaining a small advantage at the half, 46-42.
In the opening minutes of the second half, the Saints poured on the offense with Mount Ida unable to answer. Emmanuel's freshman point guard J.P. Ventura (Riva, MD) dropped a long triple that stretched the Saints' lead to 16. The Saints, who entered the game with the best record in the conference, held their largest lead of the game (16 points) 8 minutes into the second half.
The Saints had four players in double figures with Williams-Hinton and junior Mack Spellman (Clinton, NY) each netting 13 points with a combined 11 rebounds. Senior forward Levi Smith (Tulsa, OK) enjoyed a double-double, scoring 16 points with 14 boards. Ventura was Emmanuel's high-scorer with 17 points and a game-high 7 assists. The rookie shot 50% from three-point land, going 5 for 10 on the night.
The hosts were led by three players in double figures with junior Matt Bennett (Rochester, NH) recording his second consecutive double-double with 17 points and 13 boards. Sophomore Bruce Cary (Standish, ME) and freshman Teddy Louis-Jacques (Malden, MA) notched their best performances of the year. Cary netted a season and game-high 21 points with four rebounds while Louis-Jacques had his best outing as a freshman with 12 point on 6 for 12 shooting.
Mount Ida dropped to 6-14 overall and 3-10 in the GNAC, while the Saints powered up to 15-6 on the season, 13-1 in league play. The Mustangs will be on the road this weekend at Rivier College, where they will face the Raiders for the second time this season.
Emmanuel plays again next Tuesday night (2/12). The Saints will take on the visiting Lasers of Lasell College at 5:30pm. Emmanuel's lone senior on the squad, Levi Smith, will be honored prior to the start of this game.