NORTON, Mass. – Senior forward Aaron Williams (Springfield, Mass.) scored 16 points, including a three-pointer at the buzzer to give the Wheaton College (Mass.) men's basketball team a 66-63 victory over visiting Eastern Nazarene College this evening at Emerson Gymnasium on the campus of Wheaton in Norton, Mass.

The Lyons improve to 4-4 on the season, while the Lions dip to 4-4.

Williams grabbed 13 rebounds to give him three double-doubles in his last four games and added two assists, a steal and a blocked shot. Senior guard Alex Carlisle (Saint Johnsbury, Vt.) netted 16 points on 7-14 shooting to go with four assists, six rebounds, two steals and a block for Wheaton, while sophomore guard Ty Murphy (Dedham, Mass.) contributed with 11 points, including a trio of three-pointers, in addition to a blocked shot.

Senior forward Corey McGhee (Alexandria, Va.) led all scorers with 17 points on 6-12 from the floor for Eastern Nazarene and added five rebounds, two steals, a pair of blocks and an assist, while junior guard Bernie McGuinness (Cumming, Ga.) scored 16 points, pulled down nine rebounds, dished for two assists and came up with a steal. Sophomore guard Kobe Jones (Picayune, Miss.) came off the bench to chip in with 11 points, three rebounds, two assists and a steal and junior guard JaWaun Moore (Dayton, Ohio) contributed with 10 points on 4-6 from the field to go with four rebounds, four assists and a steal.

McGhee sank a pair of free throws with 11.7 seconds left in the game to knot the contest at 63-63 for the Lions. Carlisle penetrated to the left block for the Lyons, but found no opening, before kicking the ball out as he fell backwards to Williams, who made the catch and released the ball from three feet beyond the three-point line with exactly one-tenth of a second left on the clock. The ball was cradled by the twine of the net as it fell through for the Wheaton game-winner.

The teams were tied at 10-10 with 14:15 left in the opening half, before the Lyons went on a 9-2 run, paced by five points from first year guard Tristan Herry (East Taunton, Mass.), to give the home team a 19-12 lead with 11:20 to play in the half. 

Eastern Nazarene's defense clamped down as it went on a torrid 13-1 blitz, led by six points from McGhee, to take its largest lead of the game at 25-20 with 3:08 remaining in the first half. Wheaton scored the next four points before the teams traded baskets, including a layup from Carlisle to pull the Lyons to within 27-26 before the horn sent the teams to the intermission.

McGuinness made a layup for the first points of the second stanza to give the Lions a 29-26 lead just 24 seconds into the new period. Wheaton put together a 14-6 stretch, capped by a three-pointer from first year forward Eoin Morrissey (Watertown, Mass.) to give the Lyons a 40-35 lead at the 14:24 mark of the second half.

Eastern Nazarene scored five of the next six points, including a layup from senior forward Levi White (Springfield, Mass.) to pull the visitors to within 41-40 with 11:56 to go in the game. Wheaton continued to keep its guests at bay with an 8-2 run that Williams capped with a layup to push the Lyons' lead to 49-42 with 10:11 showing on the second half clock. 

Wheaton went cold over the next seven minutes and the Lions took advantage with a 17-4 stretch, keyed by seven points from Jones and five from McGuinness, to take a 59-53 margin with 2:58 remaining to play. 

The Lyons ripped off six straight points to tie the game at 59-59 with 95 seconds left in the game. Carlisle later hit a jumper in the paint to give Wheaton a 63-61 lead with 27 ticks left on the clock, before Easter Nazarene's McGhee tied the game for the seventh and last time with his free throws.

The Lyons return to the court on Thursday, December 8 when they travel to Bridgewater, Mass. to take on Bridgewater State University for a 7:00 p.m. tip-off, while the Lions host Thomas College (Maine) tomorrow at 7:00 p.m.