WORCESTER, Mass. – Worcester State University's senior forward Jeremy Bacon (Milford, Mass.) assisted the Lancers with a double-double in an 82-77 win over the visiting Sage College Gators Friday (Dec. 30) evening inside the Lancer Gymnasium.
Bacon registered a game-high 16 points and 14 rebounds throughout the contest while also recording four assists, two seals and a block. Also scoring in double-digits for the Blue and Gold were Jamal Mustapha (Worcester, Mass.), Paul Brooks (Arlington, Mass.), Cal Howes (Maynard, Mass.), and Aaron Anniballi (Milford, Mass.) with 14-13-12-12 points, respectively. Throughout the contest, Brooks rejected five Gator shots for a season best.
For the Gators, both Marcus Patterson (Bronx, N.Y.) and Davon Sylvester (Bronx, N.Y.) scored a team-high 14 points each, while Rob Mills (Newburgh, N.Y.), Barceem Dukes (Gloversville, N.Y.) and Alex Lilac (Hoosick Falls, N.Y.) also reached double-digit scoring with 12-11-10 points, respectively. Lilac piloted the offense with a game-high five assists and two steals, while Sylvester and Patterson held down the boards with eight and seven rebounds, respectively.
After the Lancers scored 11 unanswered points, the Gators finally reached the scoreboard five and a half minutes into the game when Thiago Conceicao (El Portal, Fla.) made a free throw shot. The Lancers ran away with the lead in the next five minutes of play until the Gators' Patterson made two back-to-back free throws, a layup, and two more free shots to cut the deficit to 21-10.
Patterson, who made eight of 11 free throws throughout the contest, recorded more within the next two minutes to cut the Lancers' lead to just seven. After back-and-forth play, and a monsoon of free throw shots from both teams, the Lancers closed out the half with a 7-2 run before the Gators' Dukes drained a three at the buzzer to go into the intermission with a score of 40-29.
Worcester State held their 10-point lead for the majority of the second half, holding its largest lead of 17 with 13:18 on the clock. However, a spark flared in the Gators' offense as they saw a 13-5 run to cause a Worcester State timeout with 9:47 remaining. The Gators closed the gap even more when Mills made a jumper, and when Weir Wayne (Bronx, N.Y.) drained a three to tighten the score to 58-54.
After keeping the score within four in the next two minutes of play, Worcester State's Cal Howes (Maynard, Mass.) ignited the Lancers' offense with 6:25 on the clock with a three-pointer. However, Sage's Mills responded with a three of his own to keep the score within four.
Sage's Lilac made two free throws to bring the score within two, and then moments later Sylvester tied the game up for the first time on a layup with 4:21 remaining. Worcester State took their lead back moments later on a layup from Mustapha. Mustapha then added additional points to the board, while Brooks tipped one in, resulting in a five-point advantage for the Lancers with one minute remaining in the game. The Blue and Gold sealed the win on good free throw shooting as they went 5-for-6 in the final minute.
Worcester State shot 48.3 percent from the field, while Sage held the advantage in triples at 32.0 percent. In a game that saw 72 free throw attempts, both teams went 23-for-36 for a 63.9 free throw percentage on the game.
The Lancers (2-9) resume play tomorrow (Dec. 31) when they travel to Rogers Williams for an 11 a.m. matchup. The Gators (4-6) return to action in the New Year when they travel to Purchase College on Jan. 4 for an 8 p.m. tipoff.