Men's Basketball Falls to Clark in Opening Round of Golden Bears Hoop Classic
Springfield, Mass. -Sophomore forward Brian Vayda (Sturbridge, Mass.) netted 18 points and senior forward Jack Minister (Manchester, England) added 12 points to lead Clark University to a 78-68 victory over Framingham State in one game of the opening round of the inaugural Golden Bears Hoop Classic Friday evening (Nov. 20) in the Alumni Healthful Living Center.
Clark advances to the Championship game against Mount Saint Mary (NY), who won the other opening round game, while the Rams face host Western New England in the Third-place game.
The Cougars (2-1) led 44-27 at halftime before the Rams rallied behind senior forward Josue Almodovar (Holyoke, Mass.) who scored the final five points in a 16-2 run to pull within 51-48 with 10:57 remaining.
Clark answered with six straight points before Framingham State (0-2) cut the margin to three for the final time on a pair of free throws by senior guard Darius Yarrell (Brockton, Mass.) at the 8:07 mark.
The Cougars reeled off eight unanswered points with a basket by sophomore center Tom Desautels (Manchester, Conn.) increasing the lead to 65-54 with 6:43 left.
Almodovar finished with a double-double of 21 points and 10 rebounds while senior forward Roderick Jackson (Cambridge, Mass.) added 18 points. Yarrell was the third FSC player in double figures with 11 points.
All 10 players scored points for Clark who finished shooting 50% from the field (26-for-52) and 77.3% from the foul line (17-for-22).
Golden Bears Hoop Classic - First Round
Mount Saint Mary (NY) 74, Western New England College 70
Clark 78, Framingham State 68
Saturday, November 21, 2009
Noon - Framingham State vs. Western New England College
(Third-Place Game) 2:00 p.m. - Clark vs. Mount Saint Mary (NY)
(Championship game)