BOSTON, Mass. – Aidan Hadley (Owls Head, Maine) scored 10 points and grabbed a dozen rebounds to help the Emmanuel College men's basketball team defeat Wentworth Institute of Technology, 47-40, in the consolation game of the Saints Greater Boston Classic, played in Emmanuel's Jean Yawkey Center.
With the win the Saints improve to 1-1 on the season while the Leopards slip to 0-2.
A stagnant start for both teams included nearly three minutes of scoreless action, before Emmanuel's Julian Diggs (Upper Marlboro, Md.) ended the drought with a three from the left wing. A tip-in by Hadley put the Saints up 7-2 and forced a Wentworth timeout with 12:35 remaining.
Emmanuel held Wentworth to just one field goal for the first twelve and a half minutes of action. Nico Donato (Glastonbury, Conn.) knocked down a baseline trey for the Leopards, to cut their deficit to 9-5 with just over seven minutes remaining in the half.
Hadley would convert an old-fashioned three-point play with 2:53 to go in the half, putting the hosts up 16-9, and forcing a full timeout by the Leopards. The Saints hung onto their slim advantage in the waning moments of the half, despite a Wentworth bucket in the paint by Tim Juitt (Wellesley, Mass.) and a pair of free throws from Donato.
The Saints took a 19-15 lead into the locker room at halftime. The low-scoring first half featured a combined 12 field goals for the two teams, as Wentworth shot just 20% (4-20) and Emmanuel shot 26.7% (8-30). Jordan DeMario's (Aliso Viejo, Calif.) five points led the Saints and Donato's five led the Leopards in the opening frame.
Coming out of the break at halftime, Wentworth quickly knotted the game, as Ray Bessette (Scarborough, Maine) and Cesar Fulcar (Watertown, Mass.) drained back-to-back threes for the Leopards, evening the score at 21-all just ninety seconds into the second half. The visitors would then take their only lead of the night (23-21) on a hoop by Cam Sennick (Wilton, Maine).
Emmanuel regained the lead for good by using a 20-2 run, sparked by the post play of Hadley and Kyle Davis (Groveland, Mass.). An Emmanuel 3-pointer by Josh Bushman (Hurst, Texas) forced a Leopard timeout with the Saints up 38-23 and 10:16 on the clock.
On Emmanuel's next possession, Matt Raine (Miami, Fla.) buried a baseline trifecta to give the hosts a 41-23 lead. An and-one from Jason Ganley (Northbridge, Mass.) got Wentworth back on the board with eight minutes left to play in the game.
Eleven unanswered points from Wentworth, capped with a layup on the break by Donato, got the Leopards back in the game, pulling to 41-34 with 4:44 remaining. Following a full timeout by Emmanuel, Davis and Wentworth's John-Michael Fragnoli (Schenectady, N.Y.) exchanged hoops at opposite ends, setting the score at 43-36, Saints, with just under three minutes to go.
A quick Wentworth hoop made it a five-point game and forced a Saints timeout with two and half minutes left. Neither team would connect for nearly two minutes of action, before Hadley hit one in the paint for the Saints with just 43 seconds left, giving Emmanuel a 45-38 lead. Donato sunk a lay-up for the Leopards and Diggs hit two free throws down the stretch for the Saints, as Emmanuel held on for the 47-40 win.
Diggs finished with nine points and four assists, while DeMario netted nine points and hauled in four rebounds. John Clay (Westport, Mass.) had nine rebounds and collected five steals in the win.
Donato and Ganley led the Leopards with nine points apiece. Fragnoli led Wentworth on the glass with seven boards, while Fulcar dished out four assists in the effort.
Both teams are in action on Thursday evening as Wentworth has its home opener against Clark and Emmanuel is at Wesleyan.
(Portions of this recap courtesy of Emmanuel College)