Wheaton nets 12 three-pointers in first NEWMAC win 

NORTON, Mass. – Led by three players in double-figures and a season-high 12 three-pointers, the Wheaton College men's basketball team earned a 77-66 triumph over Coast Guard Academy on Wednesday night in New England Women's and Men's Athletic Conference (NEWMAC) action at Emerson Gymnasium. 

Freshman guard Billy Battaglia (Simsbury, Conn./The Taft School) notched a game-high 19 points on 6-of-9 shooting including a 5-for-8 line from three-point range. Senior guard Scott Faucher (Lebanon, N.H.Kimball Union Academy) contributed 13 points on 3-of-4 shooting (5-for-6 from the free throw line), two assists and one rebound. Sophomore forward Ryan Clinesmith (New York, N.Y./The Hill School) turned in 12 points, five rebounds and three assists while senior forward Brian Johnson (Roxbury, Mass./Brimmer and May School) added eight points, a team-high ten caroms, three assists and one block. 

Junior guard Kevin Sowers (Monrovia, Md./Urbana) led the Bears with a team-high 14 points, two rebounds, three assists and two steals. Senior forward Jimmy Knudsen (Ridge, N.Y./Longwood) had 13 points, eight boards, two steals and one assist. Junior guard Devonte Weems (Chesapeak Beach, Md./Huntingtown) chipped in with nine points, three assists, one steal and one rebound. 

The Lyons shot 54.0-percent (27-for-50) from the field, 54.5-percent (12-for-22) from three-point range and 78.6-percent (11-for-14) at the free throw line. Wheaton recorded a season-high 12 three-pointers receiving five from Battaglia, two apiece from Faucher and Johnson and one 3-pointer each by sophomore guard Jaycob Morales (Lawrence, Mass./Central Catholic), classmate Mike Cannon (Middleton, Mass./Milton Academy) and second-year forward Eddie Capstick (Worcester, Mass./Marianapolis Prep). 

Coast Guard connected on 39.7-percent (27-for-68) of its field goal attempts, 33.3-percent (5-for-15) from long distance and 53.8-percent (7-for-13) at the line. The Bears outscored the hosts 27-11 in points off of turnovers and 13-8 in second chance points. Wheaton outrebounded the visitors 37-32 and also held a 33-29 advantage in bench points. 

Ahead 60-59 with 4:34 remaining in the second half, sophomore forward Mike O'Loughlin (Milford, N.H./Milford) finished a reverse layup through traffic at the 4:15 mark to jumpstart a 9-0 run for the Lyons that helped close out the contest. Battaglia put home a fastbreak layup at 2:53 on a beautiful feed from O'Loughlin to go ahead 64-59. Morales pulled down a rebound at 2:33 and initiated an easy fastbreak layup for O'Loughlin at the other end of the floor at 2:26 for a 66-59 advantage. Battaglia capped the run feeding a wide open Faucher in the left corner for a three-pointer after crossing over his defender to free up Faucher for the open look. 

Coast Guard led once in the second half, 47-46, with 12:42 remaining as the Bears erased a four-point deficit with a 5-0 run. Weems gave Coast Guard the lead with a layup while sophomore guard Eli Sponseller (North Pole, Alaska, North Pole) completed an old-fashioned three-point play at 13:19. 

Wheaton responded with a 12-5 run to push its gap to 58-52 and never relinquished the lead again in the contest. Clinesmith slammed home a one-handed jam at 11:40 on a crisp pass from Capstick, Morales and Johnson canned back-to-back three-pointers and Clinesmith finished off the run with a jumper at the 6:25 mark and a layup at 5:52. 

The Lyons held a slim 36-33 lead headed into the break after trailing by 11 points (15-4) over the first four minutes of the game. The lead exchanged hands six times while the score was tied on four different occasions. Wheaton's biggest lead of 12 points came with 51-seconds remaining in the contest. 

Wheaton (8-9, 1-5 NEWMAC) welcomes Clark University to Emerson Gymnasium for a NEWMAC clash on Saturday, January 26 at 3 p.m. Coast Guard (1-15, 0-6 NEWMAC) hosts MIT on Saturday in a NEWMAC matchup scheduled to tip-off at 1 p.m.