BOSTON, Mass. – Senior Jason Ganley (Northbridge, Mass.) scored a game-high 24 points and classmate Ben Kizel (Short Hills, N.J.) added a career-high 20 as the Wentworth Institute of Technology men's basketball team ran its win streak to five games with a 72-65 win over Mount Ida in non-conference action Saturday afternoon.
With the win the Leopards improve to 7-2 on the season while the Mustangs see their five-game win streak halted, falling to 6-3 on the season.
After a slow offensive start for both teams, Wentworth took a 10-9 lead on a basket from Ganley with 14:37 remaining in the opening half. The Black & Gold extended their lead to four on a three pointer from junior Zach Bergeon (Litchfield, N.H.) just over a minute later. Mount Ida trimmed the lead to just a single point on two occasions, including on a jumper from senior Jacob Saratin (West Palm Beach, Fla.) which came just under the midway point of the half.
Ganley hit a three to make it a four-point game (18-14) and ignited a 11-2 run which gave the hosts an 11-point advantage after senior Cesar Fulcar (Watertown, Mass.) hit a pair of free throws coming with just over five minutes remaining. Mount Ida brought the lead to seven three times, including on a pair of free throws from senior Joey DeFillippi (Bristol, Conn.), however a transition layup from Ganley with 1:17 left gave the hosts a 33-24 advantage at the break.
Mount Ida outscored Wentworth 15-5 over the first 7:41 of the second half and took a 39-38 lead on a jumper from sophomore Kevin Vanderhorst (Lawrence, Mass.) with 13:35 remaining. The teams went back and forth over the next seven-plus minutes as there were three ties and nine lead changes during this stretch. After a DeFillippi three pointer had given the Mustangs their largest lead of the game (four) with 6:25 remaining, A Kizel three and five straight points from senior Sam Knollmeyer (Hampton, N.H.) put Wentworth on top of good.
Kizel's three pointer started a 12-4 run in which the Leopards took a 65-58 lead on one of two free throws from Ganley with 1:34 remaining. Mount Ida chipped away at the lead and pulled within a pair on a senior Jayson Clark (Austin, Texas) three pointer coming with 54 seconds left. Two free throws from sophomore Stephen Azums (Hyde Park, Mass.) upped the lead to four, and, after a missed three from DeFillippi, Ganley got the rebound, was fouled, and hit both free throws to seal the win.
Ganley capped off an impressive week that saw him average 27.3 points per game in three Wentworth wins and his 24 points mark the fifth time this season he has scored 20 or more in a game. Kizel connected on 7-of-11 shots, including going 4-for-8 from behind the arc. Bergeon finished with nine points, while Knollmeyer scored seven points and grabbed five rebounds. Azums grabbed a game-high 12 rebounds in the win.
Three players scored in double figures for Mount Ida, led by Clark who had 13. Junior Dennis Ross added 12, and senior Kevin Conner (Mansfield, Mass.) scored 12 points and grabbed seven rebounds.
Wentworth wraps up first semester play on Thursday night at Wheelock.
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