WENHAM, Mass. – The Wentworth Institute of Technology men's basketball team used a strong defensive effort to pick up its second straight win as the Leopards fended off Gordon, 55-51, in a Commonwealth Coast Conference contest played at Gordon's Bennett Center. With the win Wentworth picked up its first win at the Bennett Center since December 30, 2010, a 79-47 triumph.
Gordon would take its largest lead of the first half in the fifth minute of the game when Alex Carnes (Phoenix, Ariz.) hit a three from the top of the the key to give Gordon an 11-8 advantage. The score remained that way for the next four minutes until John-Michael Fragnoli (Scotia, N.Y.) scored off a give-and-go from Derek Mayo (Casco, Maine). Nico Donato (Glastonbury, Conn.) gave the Leopards their first lead of the game at the 10:55 mark with an unassisted runner in the lane.
The Fighting Scots (3-6, 1-2) struggled on the offensive end down the stretch of the first half, as the Leopards outscored the hosts 17-13 in the final 10 minutes of the stanza. Wentworth took a 29-24 lead into halftime.
Wentworth (5-5, 2-1) opened the second half scoring five early points – thanks to sophomore Cam Sennick (Wilton, Maine) and freshman Jherson Colon (Boston, Mass.) – and took a 10-point lead at 34-24 with 17 minutes remaining.
Gordon responded with a 16-4 run and took a 40-38 lead on a pair of free throws by Miersma with 8:40 left. Wentworth responded with five straight points as Sennick hit a jumper and junior Ray Bessette (Dedham, Maine) 3-pointer gave the Black & Gold a 43-40 lead with 7:48 left.
After Taylor Bajema (Whitinsville, Mass.) converted a three-point play to tie the game at 43-all, Bessette drained a shot from behind the arc and Mayo made a layup as the shot clock was winding down to push the lead back to five with 4:40 left.
With 2:08 remaining, Donato made a layup to give Wentworth a 52-45 lead. Miersma would hit three of four free throws to make it 52-48 with 53 seconds left, and, with 20 seconds left, Park Thomas (Scottsdale, Ariz.) hit one of two free throws to trim the lead to three. On the ensuing possession, Colon made both free throws to extend the lead to five. Miersma hit a layup to make it a three-point game with 12 ticks left, however Bessette sealed the win by hitting one of two from the line with seven seconds left.
Bessette and Colon both came off the bench to score 12 and 11 points, respectively, with Donato and sophomore Ronnie Turner (Lewiston, Maine) scoring eight apiece. Sennick, Mayo, and Donato each grabbed six rebounds. Wentworth scored 18 points off 14 Gordon turnovers.
Miersma was the only Gordon player to break into double-figure scoring with 13 points. Carnes finished with seven points and nine rebounds to lead Gordon on the glass. The Scots had the slight edge on the boards 34-31.
Both teams hit the road Tuesday night in conference games. Wentworth travels to the University of New England while Gordon is at Western New England.
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Colon Named CCC Rookie of the Week
February 27, 2014
Men's Basketball Falls to Gordon in CCC Semifinals
February 25, 2014
Mayo, Colon Named All-Commonwealth Coast Conference
February 25, 2014
Men's Basketball Pulls off Upset at Eastern Nazarene
February 22, 2014
Men's Basketball Edged in Regular-Season Finale
February 22, 2014
CCC Men's Basketball Tournament Pairings Set
February 19, 2014
Strong Second Half Powers Endicott Past Men's Basketball
February 15, 2014
Men's Basketball Edged at Roger Williams
February 12, 2014
Donato's Buzzer Beater Lifts Men's Basketball Past Western New England
February 8, 2014
Men's Basketball Suffers Setback at Eastern Nazarene
February 4, 2014
Men's Basketball Cruises to 10th Win of the Season
February 1, 2014
Second Half Run Pushes Gordon Past Men's Basketball
January 29, 2014
Men's Basketball Sees Three-Game Skid Come to and End
January 23, 2014
Endicott Works Overtime to Defeat Men's Basketball
January 20, 2014
Colon Repeats as Rookie of the Week
January 18, 2014
Men's Basketball Falls at Nichols
January 15, 2014
Men's Basketball Holds on For Win
January 13, 2014
Colon Earns CCC Rookie of the Week Honors
January 11, 2014
Men's Basketball Rallies Past Roger Williams
January 9, 2014
Men's Basketball Win Streak Halted by Eastern Nazarene
January 7, 2014
Long-Range Shooting Helps Men's Basketball Win Third Straight
January 4, 2014
Strong Defensive Effort Lifts Men's Basketball to Win at Gordon
December 31, 2013
Men's Basketball Rolls to Win Over Maine-Fort Kent
December 30, 2013
Vassar Fends Off Men's Basketball
December 9, 2013
Colon Earns CCC Rookie Rookie of the Week Honors
December 7, 2013
Balanced Attack Paces Men's Basketball to Win over Curry
December 4, 2013
Men's Basketball Falls in Conference Opener
November 26, 2013
Men's Basketball Pulls Away in Second Half
November 25, 2013
Turner Named CCC Men's Basketball Rookie of the Week
November 23, 2013
Tufts Rallies in Second Half to Defeat Men's Basketball
November 21, 2013
Clark Overtakes Men's Basketball in Second Half
November 16, 2013
Late Run Pushes Framingham State Past Men's Basketball
November 15, 2013
Men's Basketball Opens Season With a Win
November 15, 2013
Men's Basketball Picked to Finish Seventh in CCC Pre-Season Poll
October 19, 2013
Five Inducted Into Athletic Hall of Fame
July 23, 2013
Arlen Galloway Named Head Men's Basketball Coach