THE BASICS 

Score: Emerson 80, Wheaton (Mass.) 68

Records: Emerson Lions (9-8, 4-2 NEWMAC) ; Wheaton (Mass.) (10-6, 1-5 NEWMAC) 

Location: Norton, Mass. (Emerson Gymnasium)

Date: Saturday, January 19th, 2019

The Lead: After losing two in a row, the Emerson Men's Basketball team traveled to Norton, Mass. to take on the Wheaton (Mass.) Lyons, and came away victorious with an 80-68 win, led by Junior Jack O'Connor (Newport, R.I.) who had a game high 25 points.

INSIDE THE NUMBERS 

• O'Connor led all scorers in the game with 25 points, adding four rebounds, two steals, one block, and one assist.
• Geoffrey Gray notched a double-double with 15 points and 13 rebounds.
• Zach Waterhouse (Hampton, N.H.) added 18 points for the Lions.
• Wheaton had four players in double figures, with Riley Tetreault and Matt Allegrezza lead the pack with 17 points each.
• The Lions shot 44.1% from the field compared to Wheaton (Mass.) who shot 36.1%. Both teams grabbed 40 rebounds.

HOW IT HAPPENED 

• Both teams kept the opening of the game close, with the biggest lead being five points in the first ten minutes.  After ten, Emerson built a four point lead on a pair of Jarred Houston (Norwood, Mass.) free throws.
• The Lions continued to build on their lead, extending it to eight on a O'Connor jumper with 7:35 remaining in the first half.
• Wheaton (Mass.) roared back, cutting the lead to one before Emerson closed out the half on a 9-4 run to open up a six point lead at the break, 40-36.
• Wheaton (Mass.) opened the half on a 8-2 run to knot the game at 44.
• The teams continued to battle, with Wheaton (Mass.) eventually grabbing the lead at 59-57 with 8:33 remaining in regulation. They held the lead at 64-62 with 4:41 remaining.
• Emerson hit back to back three-pointers by O'Connor and Waterhouse, grabbing the lead at 68-64 with just under three minutes remaining.
• Gray added a layup and O'Connor hit another three pointer to seal the deal for the Lions, opening up an eight point lead with just over a minute remaining.
• Emerson finished the game on a 16-4 run in the last three minutes, winning with a final score of 80-68.

UP NEXT

• Emerson welcomes the Babson Beavers to the Brown & Plofker Gym on Wednesday in the second half of a NEWMAC doubleheader on Wednesday, starting at 7:30pm.
• Wheaton (Mass.) travels to take on the Coast Guard Bears on Wednesday with the game starting at 7:30pm.

STAY LIVE WITH THE LIONS

• Stay updated on the Emerson men's basketball team and follow the Lions on Twitter, Facebook at Emerson College Men's Basketball as well as on Instagram. Also be sure to tune into Emerson Channel Sports to catch the Lions in action!