Fitchburg, MA --- Junior Brendan Rios (Easthampton, MA) netted 16 of his game-high 20 points in the second half as he helped propel Worcester State to a 70-53 triumph over Fitchburg State in MASCAC men's basketball action this afternoon.
With the win the Lancers have posted their second consecutive come-from-behind victory to improve to 5-12 and 2-3 in conference play while the Falcons slip to 1-13 on the season and 1-3 in the league circuit.
WSU was also paced by 15 final stanza points by freshman Noris Cuevas-Nova (Amherst, MA) as senior Dane Jobst (Athol, MA) logged his 11th double-double in 17 games with 12 points and a contest-best 18 rebounds.
First-year Marquez McKreith-Collins (Springfield, MA/Cathedral) did a little bit of everything with eight points, five rebounds and a team-high four helpers off the bench for the Blue and Gold.
Senior Mike Ingram-Rubin (Boston, MA/Bedford) pitched in with a squad-best 18 points and three swipes for Fitchburg State while sophomore Anthony Muccoli (Nashua, NH) chipped in with 11.
Trailing 30-22 at the intermission, the Lancers took over the contest with a 16-3 surge to start off the second period. Nova and Rios made it rain three pointers as they connected for a pair of trey's each in the spurt to help the visitors take over the 38-33 margin with 15:27 left in regulation.
Ingram-Rubin helped slow the momentum with a traditional three-point play to get within two, but Worcester State continued their torrid pace and used an 8-2 run to go up 45-37 four minutes later.
With the double-digit advantage in sight at the 7:05 mark (51-41), the Lancers swelled their margin to as many as 20 following a bucket by junior Charles Gunter (Boston, MA/New Mission) with 3:14 remaining before settling for the final score.
After Fitchburg State staked the early 11-2 lead, the hosts extended the margin to 17-9 with 7:49 left in the opening frame.
A McKreath-Collins trifecta made it a five point game with six minutes on the clock, but the Falcons answered with a Muccoli triple and walked away with the 30-22 advantage at the break. Ingram-Rubin poured in 14 of his 18 points in the opening half.
Worcester State sank half of their shots from the field for the game (51 percent – 27-for-52) – including an eye-popping 64 percent of their attempts in the second period (18-for-28).
WSU also held leads in rebounds (42-27) and second-chance baskets (20-6) while they outscored the Falcons 48-23 in the final stanza alone.
Fitchburg State forced 18 turnovers and held the 13-7 lead in points off of miscues. FSU also hit 41 percent of their bids from the floor for the contest (24-for-59), but were limited to 33 percent in the second half (10-for-30).
Both teams continue their respective MASCAC slates with home matchups. Worcester State entertains Framingham State at the Hart Center on the campus of Holy Cross in an 8:30 matchup while the Falcons host Westfield State at 7:30 PM.
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