Pinckney the difference for Emerson

NORTON, Mass. – Behind a career-high 20 rebounds and a game-high 15 points from junior forward Austin Pinckney (Miami, Fla./Gulliver Prep), Emerson College defeated Wheaton College in men's basketball action, 66-44, on Wednesday evening in a New England Women's and Men's Athletic Conference (NEWMAC) contest inside of Emerson Gymnasium.

Pinckney, who has now tallied at least 16 rebounds in a single-game three times this season for Emerson, shot 6-for-10 from the field and 3-for-5 from beyond the arc alongside a team-high three blocks. Junior forward Ryan Clinesmith (New York, N.Y./The Hill School) chipped in with 11 points and eight boards, while classmate Michael Thorpe (Newton, Mass./Newton North) and Mike Carbone (North Reading, Mass./St. John's Prep) added eight and ten points, respectively.

Wheaton first-year guard Ryan Fogarty (Walpole, Mass./Walpole) led the Blue and White with eight points, while sophomore forward Zach Parsons (Belchertown, Mass./Belchertown) and junior guard Billy Battaglia (Simsbury, Conn./Taft School) each registered seven points apiece. Parsons pulled down five boards and senior guard Eddie Capstick (Worcester, Mass./Marianapolis Prep) grabbed a team-high six rebounds in addition to six points and a career-high four steals.

Both teams started off slowly as Wheaton held a slim 6-4 margin just 6:51 into the first stanza. Emerson struck back with a 7-0 spurt of their own midway through the first half to take an 11-6 lead that featured a trey from Thorpe, a jumper via junior guard Jacob Forchheimer (Avon, Conn./Avon) and a layup from classmate Brian Hurley (South Boston, Mass./Thayer Academy).

Wheaton was able to climb back into the game by closing the margin to a single point on two occasions (16-15 and 18-17) with under five minutes on the clock, but Emerson answered the Blue and White's comeback bid with a 9-4 run to cap its advantage at six points, 27-21, at the break.

Each squad opened the second stanza (5:41 elapsed in the half) with five points apiece (33-26). Wheaton's coming in the form of a three-pointer from Battaglia and a layup by Fogarty, while Emerson saw a pair of free throws and a layup from Clinesmith and a layup from Thorpe.

After Clinesmith and Thorpe had an answer for the Blue and White's offensive outburst, Emerson did not look back as the visitors held a double-digit margin for the remainder of the matchup to hold onto an eventual 66-44 victory. Emerson went on to manufacture its largest lead of the night, 66-41, with 1:06 left to play in the game, after converting 7-of-8 free throws.

The Blue and White shot 25.9-percent (15-for-58) from the field, 7.7-percent (1-for-13) from beyond the arc, and 56.5-percent (13-for-23) from the free throw line. Emerson shot 37.7-percent (23-for-61) from the field, 35.3-percent (6-for-17) from deep range and 73.7-percent (14-for-19) from the charity stripe. Both teams were equal with 15 points off of turnovers in the game, while Emerson held a 30-20 margin in points in the paint and a 52-37 differential in rebounds.

Wheaton (3-12, 0-5 NEWMAC) returns to action on Saturday when the Lyons' travel to WPI for a NEWMAC contest at 2 p.m., while Emerson (9-7, 3-2 NEWMAC) welcomes MIT for a conference tilt on Saturday with tip-off slated for 1 p.m.

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