NORTON, Mass. – Senior forward Brian Johnson (Roxbury, Mass./Brimmer and May School) guided Wheaton College to a 61-57 victory over Emerson College with his first double-double of the season scoring 13 points and grabbing ten rebounds (four offensive) in non-conference action at Emerson Gymnasium.

Sophomore forward Ryan Clinesmith (New York, N.Y./The Hill School) compiled 13 points and eight rebounds while classmate Jaycob Morales (Lawrence, Mass./Central Catholic) led all players in scoring with 16 points (10-for-11 from the line), three rebounds, one assist and one steal.

Wheaton shot 34.0-percent from the field, 26.9-percent from long distance and 58.1-percent at the free throw line. The Lyons were outrebounded 40-38 by Emerson but won the turnover margin, 22-17, forcing ten turnovers on steals. The Lions posted an identical 34.0-percent field goal percentage, went 46.2-percent from beyond the arc and 77.3-percent at the charity stripe (17-22).

Emerson freshman guard Michael Thorpe (Newton, Mass./Newton North) tallied a team-high 14 points on 4-of-11 shooting from the field, 2-of-3 from long distance and 4-of-6 at the line. Junior guard Jon Goldberg (Stowe, Vt./Rice Memorial) produced a double-double effort for the Lions with 11 points, ten rebounds, three assists and one steal.

Wheaton trailed at halftime, 32-30, despite leading the contest for the majority of the first half. Emerson, who trailed by as many as seven points at the 16:40 mark, trimmed away at its deficit until tying up the score at 25-25 with 2:40 remaining.

Morales quickly answered after the Lyons gave up their first lead of the night with a three-ball from the wing on assist from senior captain and guard Scott Faucher (Lebanon, N.H./Kimball Union Academy) to make it 28-25. Emerson continued to chip away closing the gap to 30-29 on a free throw shot from freshman forward Sean Duffy (Berwyn, Pa./Conestoga) while Goldberg closed out the stanza with a three-pointer with four seconds left to go up by two.

In the second half, sophomore forward Eddie Capstick (Worcester, Mass./Marianapolis Prep) pushed Wheaton ahead, 33-32, with a three-pointer on the Lyons opening position (19:14) on a feed from junior guard Will Bayliss (Manchester, N.H./Tilton School). Capstick finished the game with eight points – two 3-pointers – and three rebounds.

Emerson freshman forward Kyle Edwards (Potomac, Md./Winston Churchill) responded for the Lions with a layup at the 17:05 mark giving the visitors their only other lead of the matchup.

Wheaton went on a 17-6 run over the next six minutes and 55 seconds jumping out to its biggest lead of the game, a 12-point margin (52-40). Morales fueled the offensive surge with a three-pointer at 10:58 and four makes at the foul line along the way. Johnson contributed five points during the run, Clinesmith added four and freshman guard Eric Davis (Middleton, Mass./Milton Academy) canned a three-pointer at 12:48.

Morales sealed the victory for the Lyons with under 15-seconds to play draining a pair of free throws for a six-point lead (61-55). Emerson sophomore forward Patrick Lowndes (Granby, Conn./Granby Memorial) capped the scoring with a layup with three seconds to go.