THE BASICS 

Score: No. 23 WPI 79, Emerson 68

Records: Emerson Lions (8-4, 1-2 NEWMAC) ; No. 23 WPI Engineers (12-1, 4-0 NEWMAC)

Location: Boston, Mass. (Brown & Plofker Gym)

Date: January 15, 2022 

The Lead: Senior Nate Martin paced the Emerson men's basketball team with a season-high 24 points in the Lions' 79-68 NEWMAC home opener setback against the visiting No. 23 WPI Engineers on Saturday afternoon at Brown & Plofker Gym. 

INSIDE THE NUMBERS 

EMERSON

Martin: 24 points
Jarred Houston: 14 points & eight rebounds 
Max Davis: 10 points 
Zach Waterhouse: four assists & one steal 

WPI

John Adams: 23 points & 10 rebounds
John Lowther: 21 points
Colin McNamara: 11 points & two steals
Kahleb Downing: six assists 

HOW IT HAPPENED 

• Down 12-8, Emerson erased its four-point deficit with a quick 5-0 spurt that pushed the Lions ahead 13-12 thanks to junior James Beckwith's three falling through at 13:16. Adams and McNamara would knock down a pair of shots to put WPI back on top at 16-13 as DiCenzo turned a steal into the game-tying basket at 17-all. 
• Four more ties ensued over the last several minutes of the opening half, the last coming at 31-all when Davis put up a layup with 2:02 on the clock. Davis' basket was the last for the Lions in the frame as WPI went on to tally the final five points. 
• At the end of the opening 20 minutes, Emerson was looking at a five-point deficit with the score standing at 36-31. Martin led Emerson scorers with 10 points while Houston followed with eight. 
• Emerson kept pace with WPI to start off the second and pulled with one at 47-46 behind a trey from Davis at 13:27. After the Lions inched within one, the Engineers began to pull away and gained their biggest lead of 11 after Adams drew the and-one (64-53). 
• The Lions pulled themselves out of the double-digit hole and closed the gap to four with 5:06 in regulation when Martin dropped a triple from the corner to put the score at 66-62. A 6-2 spark by WPI the 4:46 mark to 2:29 once again helped the Engineers venture into a double-figure lead at 74-64. 
• A foul by McNamara put Waterhouse on the line with 1:05 left to play as he cashed in both shots, which would become the final baskets for the Lions. WPI went on to use the line in the final seconds as Emerson fell, 79-68. 

UP NEXT

• Emerson has a quick turnaround come Monday, January 17th in a rescheduled matchup with Coast Guard that it set for a 1:00 p.m. tip-off.