Late Surge Lifts Men’s Basketball Past Lesley 59-53

Framingham, Mass. – The Framingham State University men's basketball team received 20 points from sophomore Tyri Hampton (Fitchburg, Mass.) as the Rams defeated Lesley 59-53 this evening in non-conference action at the Athletic Center.

With the win, the Rams improve to 3-6 on the season while the loss drops the Lynx to 4-4.

Hampton led all scorers with his game-high 20 points on six-of-10 shooting from the field including three-of-six from behind the arc to go along with eight rebounds, two assists, a block and a steal.  Senior Ben Roache (Dighton, Mass.) added 12 points, four rebounds and three assists, while sophomore Steve Vayda (Oxford, Mass.) added 10 points. Junior Charles Valbrun (Hyde Park, Mass.) contributed four points, three rebounds and four blocks.

The Lynx were led by 18 points from senior Marquise Johnson. Johnson connected on nine-of-11 from the field and added five rebounds, two assists and three steals.  Junior Charlie Reznikoff was the only other Lynx to record double figures with 16 points and five boards.

The first half was back and forth and saw four ties and five lead changes before the Lynx closed the half with a mini run to take a 25-23 lead at the break.

The second half was much the same with five more lead changes and a pair of ties.  The Rams led 44-41 with just under seven minutes remaining and used a 7-2 spurt fueled by three points from freshman Trevor Manyak (Bolton, Mass.) to open up an eight point lead, 51-43, with four minutes remaining.

The Lynx cut the deficit to five on a Johnson bucked with just under two minutes remaining, but the Rams hit five of six free throws down the stretch to seal the victory.

The Rams are back in action on Saturday when they host Wheelock in a non-conference contest at 3 p.m., while the Lynx travel to Suffolk on Saturday at 1 p.m.