Battaglia pours in his fifth-straight double digit game

WORCESTER, Mass. – The Wheaton College men's basketball team dropped a 69-58 non-conference decision to Worcester State University on Saturday afternoon on the campus of Assumption College.

Wheaton sophomore guard Billy Battaglia (Simsbury, Conn./Taft School) turned in his fifth-straight double digit performance with 16 points on 6-of-14 shooting from the field including a 3-for-4 performance at the free throw line. Freshman guard Agyei Gregory (St. Thomas, Virgin Islands/St. Andrews) notched seven points, junior forward Mike O'Loughlin (Milford, N.H./Milford) contributed nine points off the bench and freshman guard Ben Christopher (Northampton, Mass./Northampton) added eight points in a reserve role.

Worcester State junior guard Brendan Rios (Easthampton, Mass./Easthampton) registered a season-best 26 points going 9-for-28 from the field alongside a 4-for-9 showing beyond the arc. Rios also added ten rebounds and two steals. Senior forward Dane Jobst (Athol, Mass./Mahar) collected his sixth double-double of the season in just ten games with 19 points and 18 rebounds (seven offensive). Junior Charles Gunter (Boston, Mass./New Misson) finished with eight points and a career-high ten boards and freshman Noris Cuevas-Nova (Amherst, Mass./Amherst) chipped in with 11 points.

Wheaton held a close 14-11 advantage near the midway point of the first half before the Lancers used a 12-2 run over a six minute span for a 23-16 edge with four minutes left on the clock.

O'Laughlin netted a lay-up and junior guard Jaycob Morales (Lawrence, Mass./Central Catholic) both helped trim the deficit to five points on two occasions before the end of the opening frame, but Worcester State maintained a 30-23 lead at the intermission.

With the Lancers nursing a 32-27 advantage early in the second half, the hosts used a 7-2 spurt and took a ten-point lead (39-29) with 14:18 left to play. The Lyons chipped away at their deficit with consecutive free throws and a three-point by Christopher to close the gap to 44-39 with 10:28 left.

Worcester State answered with a 10-2 run highlighted by a Rios three-pointer to go push ahead, 54-41, near the eight minute mark. After the Lancers' margin grew to 67-50 with 2:40 remaining, the Lyons made a final push scoring ten of the last 14 points of the contest for the final score.

The Lancers dominated the boards as they finished with a 60-37 margin in total rebounds and a 20-11 lead in offensive caroms. Worcester State also registered double-digit advantages in points in the paint (34-14) and second chance opportunities (28-9).

Ten different Wheaton student-athletes notched at least one bucket as the visiting bench outscored the opposing reserves, 33-23. The Lyons also had a 12-9 margin in transition points and nearly outscored the Blue and Gold in the second half (39-34).

Both squads continue their schedules with home games in the next week. Worcester State (2-9) hosts Fisher at 2 p.m. on Tuesday while Wheaton (4-4) kicks off New England Women's and Men's Athletic Conference (NEWMAC) play with a 7 p.m. matchup against Coast Guard on Wednesday. With the win, the Lancers are now tied with the Lyons in the all-time series dating back to 1989-1990 at 4-4.

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