Battaglia & Gregory register 17 points apiece

WESTON, Mass. – Senior Will Bayliss (Manchester, N.H./Tilton School), sophomore Billy Battaglia (Simsbury, Conn./Taft School) and freshman Agyei Gregory (St. Thomas, Virgin Islands/St. Andrews) combined for 49 points to lift the Wheaton College men's basketball team to a 66-60 triumph against Regis College on Saturday afternoon in a non-conference matchup.

Battaglia and Gregory tied for the game-high in points with 17 apiece, while Bayliss poured in 15 points alongside five assists, three rebounds and two steals. Freshmen Zach Parsons (Belchertown, Mass./Belchertown) and Alex Surgman (Concord, Mass./Concord-Carlisle) hauled in six rebounds, respectively, and junior guard Mike Cannon (New York, N.Y./Hyde School) contributed five points, two rebounds, four blocks, four steals and one assist.

Senior guard Ahmad Charles (Cambridge, Mass./Cambridge Rindge & Latin) led the Pride with 15 points, while Chris Leak Jr. (New Haven, Conn./James Hillhouse) posted his second-straight double-double with 13 points and 12 rebounds, including eight offensive boards. Sophomore guard Carlos Bermudez-Glean (Boston, Mass./Cathedral) finished the day with ten points and a team-high four steals. Senior guard Ryan Chambers (Abington, Mass./Abington) scored eight points and is now only eight away from reaching the 1,000 point plateau.

Regis won the rebounding battle 43-34, including 23 offensive rebounds, which led to 13 second-chance points. The Lyons shot an efficient 21-of-45 (46.7%) from the floor and shot even better from beyond the arc, nailing 9-of-17 from long range. The Pride shot only 34.4% from the field on the day and hit only 5-of-17 three pointers.

After leading 30-18 at halftime, Wheaton opened the second half scoring six of the first seven points as Gregory buried a pair of tough threes with a hand in his face to give the Lyons their largest lead of the game at 36-19. Regis slowly chipped away and a Chambers triple with 10:54 to play made it a 38-30 game. Leak Jr. scored on a nifty pass from Bermudez-Glean and then added two free throws for a personal 4-0 run that cut the deficit to only four.

Wheaton answered with a 16-11 run of its own to stretch the lead back to eight (54-41) following a Parsons fast-break layup with 4:14 remaining in the game. The two teams traded baskets before Ahmad Charles stepped in the passing lane and stole a pass and went coast-to-coast to cut the lead to 57-49.

Bayliss went 3-for-4 at the free throw line over the next 30 seconds to push Wheaton's advantage back to 11, but the Pride turned up the defense and scored six unanswered points to make it a 60-55 contest. Following a Wheaton turnover after a Chambers jumper, the Lyons were forced to burn a timeout. Chambers could not connect on the ensuing Pride possession and the Lyons got out on the fast break and pushed the ball ahead to Battaglia who drove to the basket and drew a flagrant foul.

Battaglia calmly stepped to the line and nailed four free throws, giving the Lyons a 64-55 lead with less than a minute to play. Charles and Osanto Marc Jr. (Kissimmee, Fla./Poinciana) made it interesting late combining for five points in the final 40 seconds, but it was too little too late as Wheaton held on for a 66-60 victory.

Wheaton (2-2) visits Roger Williams University on Tuesday, November 26 for a non-conference matchup at 7 p.m. Regis (1-4) hosts Eastern Nazarene next Tuesday at 7 p.m.

For the latest on Wheaton College Athletics, follow the Lyons via social media on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and YouTube.