Men's Basketball Edged by Newbury in Season Opener 76-72
Brookline, Mass. – Freshman forward Andre Santana (Worcester, Mass.) recorded a double double of 20 points and 12 boards off the bench, but the Framingham State men's basketball team was defeated 76-72 on the road by Newbury College in the season opener for both schools in a non-conference game played at Hellenic College.
The Nighthawks are now 1-0 on the year and the Rams are 0-1.
The game was fast paced and back and forth with 10 ties and 12 lead changes. Newbury set the tone of the game from the opening tip, pushing the tempo against the Rams, but they were able to keep pace with Nighthawks early and took the lead with a pair 6-0 runs early in the first half.
Momentum began to shift after freshman guard Dallas Serrano (Valley Stream, N.Y.) knocked down both of his free throws with less than five minutes left in the half to close the Newbury deficit to one, 26-25. The rest of the half went back and forth with the Rams taking a 36-34 lead at the break on a Santana layup with eight seconds on the clock.
The beginning of the second half looked much like the first with the two teams trading points. Tied at 43-43 with 15:44 remaining in the game, the Nighthawks rattled off a 14-3 run to take the lead for good with the largest lead of the game for either team (57-46).
The Rams chipped away at the lead and pulled within four on a Justin Perron (North Attleboro, Mass.) bucket with 31 ticks left on the clock, but the Nighthawks hit 4-of-6 from the line to seal the win.
In his first collegiate game, Santana led four Rams in double figures as he connected on 10-of-16 from the floor (63%). Sophomore Yemi Ajao (Randolph, Mass.) chipped in 14 points, including 8-of-10 from the line, and six boards, while senior Marcus McLaurin (Braintree, Mass.) added 13 despite struggling from the field in the game. Freshman Robert Jones (Cohasset, Mass.) also recorded double digits in his first collegiate game with 11 points.
The Nighthawks will return to the hard-court on Friday November 18th when they face Tufts University at the Charlie Ryan Invitational hosted by Thomas College in Waterville, Maine, while the Rams tip-off against Babson College on Thursday November 17th at 8 p.m.