BOSTON, Mass. – Sophomore guard Jarrell Jackson (Brockton, Mass.) scored 21 points and dished out five assists while senior guard Mark Mastrullo (Billerica, Mass.) added 18 of his own as the Curry College men's basketball team advanced to the championship game of the 2010 The Commonwealth Coast Conference Tournament with a 77-67 win over Wentworth.
The Colonels, who will be making their third title game appearance in the last four seasons, took the lead for good with 16:33 remaining in the half on a Mastrullo layup. Junior forward Rodney Bennett (Mattapan, Mass.) put Curry up four on its next possession, which was followed by a long three from Mastrullo, increasing the lead to seven with 15:16 left. A pair of sophomore guard Adam Dombrowski (Dunstable, Mass.) three pointers would cut the lead to one, however, on Wentworth's next six possessions the Leopards would come up empty, turning the ball over each time. The damage was limited, though, as Curry would only get three points during the stretch.
A 14-4 Curry run over a span of 6:38 increased the lead to a dozen with 3:23 left and the Colonels would lead by 11 (35-24) at the half. Curry forced 14 first-half turnovers, scoring nine points, and held the Leopards to 34.8 percent shooting.
Outscoring the Leopards 13-6 to open the half, the Colonels took their largest lead of the night, 18, with 14:26 left when junior forward Chris Bonadies (Medfield, Mass.) hit a jumper. Curry led by 18 with 9:19 left when Bonadies hit one of two free throws, but Wentworth would claw its way back into the game with a 13-4 run and trailed by just nine (57-48) with 4:30 remaining in the contest. A key three pointer by junior guard Michael Worrick (North Grafton, Mass.) pushed the lead back to double digits with 2:27 left, but the Leopards would not go away, trimming the lead to as few as five on two freshman guard Corey Therriault (Auburn, Maine) free throws with 42 ticks left. The Colonels would hit seven of eight free throws down the stretch and pull away for the win.
Bonadies scored 12 points and grabbed 10 rebounds, while senior guard Phillippe Jourdain (Cambridge, Mass.) had 12 points, eight rebounds, six assists, and four steals. Curry shot 52.6 percent from the floor in the second half and held Wentworth to 37.5 percent from the floor for the game.
Senior guard Jack Barrett (Reading, Mass.) tallied 18 points and dished out eight assists, while Dombrowlski and Therriault each had 12 points.
Winners of four in a row, Curry improves to 15-12 on the year and will travel to Gordon on Saturday night seeking its second league title in three seasons. The Fighting Scots won the regular-season meeting between the two clubs, 74-68, on Jan. 23, in Wenham, Mass. Wentworth sees its four-game win streak end, falling to 15-11. The Leopards will find out about a possible ECAC Tournament berth on Monday.
