NORTON, Mass. -- Junior guard Alex Carlisle (Saint Johnsbury, Vt.) poured in a game-high 28 points to lead the Wheaton College (Mass.) men's basketball team over visiting Massachusetts Institute of Technology this afternoon in a New England Women's & Men's Athletic Conference contest at Emerson Gymnasium on the Wheaton campus in Norton, Mass. The Lyons improve to 8-15 overall and 3-9 in the league, while the Engineers dip to 12-10 and 5-7.

Prior to the game, Wheaton honored its only senior on the roster Zach Dagan (Merrimack, N.H.) in a ceremony to thank him and his family for their contributions over the past four years.

The Lyons never trailed in the second half and were 8-11 from three-point range as part of a season-best 61.9% (13-21) effort from beyond the arc for the game. Wheaton shot 58.6% (34-58) from the floor and despite MIT committing just three more turnovers (17-14), it took advantage and owned a 22-10 points off turnovers margin.

Carlisle netted more than 20 points in a game for the 13th time this season and was 12-18 from the floor to go with two rebounds, five assists, two steals and just one turnover for the Lyons. Junior guard Evan Cook (Dunstable, Mass.) scored 14 points on 5-7 from the floor, including 4-5 from three-point range and added four assists, six rebounds and two steals, while classmate Marckenley Lima (Roslindale, Mass.) contributed with 14 points, including four trifectas to go with four boards, three steals and a trio of assists. Junior forward Aaron Williams (Springfield, Mass.) was limited to just 13-plus minutes due to foul trouble, but still managed to score 11 points, grab four rebounds and dish for an assist.

Senior guard Julian Manyika (San Francisco, Calif.) came off the bench to match his career high with 21 points, knocking down seven treys, in addition to two rebounds, a pair of blocks and an assist to lead the Engineers. Senior guard Ian Hinkley (Raleigh, N.C.) netted 18 points and hit four three-balls to go with four rebounds, four steals and three assists. Senior guard Dan Pilsbury (Millington, N.J.) handed out a game-high and personal-best seven assists and scored 16 points on 5-8 from the floor to go with eight rebounds and a pair of assists.

Hinkley drained a triple with 12:45 left in the second half for MIT to knot the score at 56-56 for the third tie of the session, but Wheaton put together a 14-3 run, capped by a three-pointer from first year forward Khaled Thaher (Amman, Jordan) to give the home team a 70-59 lead with 8:42 to play in the game. 

The Lyons maintained a 72-61 margin at the 7:40 mark, before the Engineers pulled to within a deuce following a 14-5 stretch to make it 77-75 with 3:10 remaining in the stanza. Pilsbury fueled the run with six points.

Wheaton effectively put the game out of reach with seven unanswered points, including five from Carlisle to give the Lyons an 84-75 advantage with 1:43 showing on the second half clock.

Manyika drilled a three-pointer to give MIT a 26-25 edge for the 10th lead change over the first 11 minutes of play, before Wheaton reeled off 10 straight points, punctuated by a three-pointer from Cook to give the home team a 35-26 cushion with 7:26 left in the opening half. The Engineers responded with a 10-2 burst to cut the deficit to 37-36 with 4:03 to play in the first session. The Lyons maintained their slim lead and took a 40-38 margin into the break. 

Wheaton returns to action on Wednesday, February 16 when it heads to Worcester, Mass. to take on conference rival Worcester Polytechnic Institute at 7:00 p.m., while MIT heads across the river to play NEWMAC foe Emerson College on the same night at 8:00 p.m.