Worcester, MA- After 29 years the Worcester State Lancers make their return to the NCAA Tournament taking on hosts #15 Middlebury College in the first round of the NCAA Tournament. The Lancers were looking to advance to make it on to the all central mass second round in Vermont as they pushed the Panthers to the limit Friday night.
The game tip-off fast with each team going basket for basket in the first five minutes before sophomore Aaron Nkrumah (Worcester, MA) sank two free throws to push the Lancers into the lead at 10-8. Strong defense by junior Ryan Rubenskas (Bridgewater, MA) and some deep three action by Nkrumah would keep the Lancers ahead for the next five minutes of the first. Middlebury never backed down during the stretch, scoring off several second chance opportunities (7 points in total in the half) to keep pace with the surging Lancers. The Panthers managed to bring the game within one point with 11 minutes remaining, but a crisp three by senior Tayjaun McKenzie (Boston, MA) pushed the lead forward. The Panthers were able to cut it down after some quick defensive pressure, but the Lancers responded with a push of their own as junior Brandon Goris (Bronx, NY) forced a turnover that led to a McKenzie jumper to put the Lancers back in the lead at 20-18 with nine minutes remaining.
The Worcester State graduate student Erik Bjorn (Holden, MA) was a dominant presence standing under the basket all night, contesting every layup from the Panthers to force the unwanted shot. The Panthers were forced to sacrifice three men low in a bid to out rebound the Lancers low men, a tactic that finally paid off when they took a single point lead with under 7 minutes. A Goris three-pointer off a dish from Nkrumah quickly put the Lancers back on top. Tight man-to-man defense worked to limit the Panthers chances for success, but some missed attacking opportunities found Middlebury tying the game with under four minutes remaining. The game continued as a back-and-forth battle with steals by junior Sam Dion (Barre, MA) and rebounds by Bjorn and Rubenskas which kept Middlebury from adding to their total for the rest of the half. Two outstanding recoveries by senior Zion Hendrix (Charlotte, NC) elevated the intensity in the final two and half as the Lancers grabbed a quick four points to regain the 30-26 leading into the halftime break.
Heading into halftime the Lancers shot an impressive 44% from the field, with the major factor being the 54.5% three-point shooting percentage that the Lancers held over the Panthers 37.5% field goal and 25% three-point percentage. The Lancers dominated the play in the first half, holding the lead for a total of 11:47 minutes. The bench for Worcester State was instrumental, adding 11-points to the score in comparison to the Panthers two points.
It took two minutes into the second half and several missed offensive opportunities by the Lancers before Middlebury was able to reclaim the lead with 7 unanswered points, jumping out to grab the 33-30 lead. It would be four minutes into the second before a Bjorn layup cut the lead to a single point, before a third foul placed him in a tight foul situation with 15 minutes remaining. A three pointer from Middlebury's Noah Osher extended the lead back to four points and a steal and set play basket from Sam Stevens would see Middlebury jump out to a 6-point lead before Rubenskas sunk a floater to cut into the lead. Middlebury found their three point magic in the second half going on a stretch of makes to turn the tide of the game. Dion, fouled, sinking a three-pointer with under 14 minutes remaining, gave the Lancers a new spark of life as he converted for a four point play to bring the lead to three. Middlebury's three point streak continued though as they hit their fifth in a row, forcing a timeout by the Lancers with under 13 minutes in action to go. A well crafted play out of the timeout saw Rubenskas get fouled on the made reverse layup, converting the three point play. Rubenskas continued to dominate under the basket both offensively and defensively with a driving layup putting the Lancers down only 8 with 10 minutes to go.
The score would remain 53-43 in the Panthers favor for over two minutes in the middle of the second half, as each team worked to reassert control, before another hard-earned layup from Rubenskas moved the Lancers back within 8 points. Middlebury was on pace with the Lancers in the second, responding to each comeback bid to maintain the lead. A turnover laden second half for the Lancers began to take their toll late in the second as Middlebury capitalized on some rushed passes to jump the lead out to 11 points as three pointers became the name of the game with Middlebury going 7-10 in the half, while the Lancers struggled, going 2-10, allowing the Panthers to build up to a 21-point lead in the final two minutes. The final score would see the Worcester State Lancers fall to the Middlebury Panthers 76-51.
The Lancers shot 32.8% from the field with 19 rebounds. Rubenskas led the team with 14 points, 5 rebounds and 3 blocks in the game.
The Lancers close their season at 22-6 (12-0 MASCAC), while the Middlebury Panthers advance to the second round of the NCAA Tournament to take on Nichols College.