BOSTON, Mass. -- The Wheaton College (Mass.) men's basketball team was defeated by host Emerson College, 89-86, this evening in New England Women's & Men's Athletic Conference play at Brown and Plofker Gym in Boston, Mass.

The Lyons fall to 8-7 overall and 3-2 in league play, while the Lions improve to 9-7 and 4-1.

Both teams had no problem scoring the basketball from anywhere on the court with Wheaton shooting 48.4% (30-62) from the field, including 10-24 (41.7%) from three-point range and was 16-18 from the free throw line for a 88.9% clip. Emerson was just as efficient, hitting 51.7% (31-60) of its shots from the floor and was 7-15 (46.7%) from three-point territory, while sinking 20 of 22 free throws for a 90.9% success rate. The teams combined for 18 turnovers in a well-played game that saw the Lyons turn the ball over just 10 times to the Lions total of eight.

Senior guard Alex Carlisle (Saint Johnsbury, Vt.) led Wheaton with 26 points on 8-16 from the floor and a perfect 9-9 from the line and added two rebounds, a pair of assists and a blocked shot. Sophomore guard Ty Murphy (Dedham, Mass.) was on fire from three-point range, knocking down six of eight from downtown to fuel a 20-point effort to match his career high in addition to two rebounds and a steal. Senior guard Evan Cook (Dunstable, Mass.) netted 18 points and was 6-9 from the floor and 4-5 from the free throw stripe. He added three assists and two rebounds and senior forward Aaron Williams (Springfield, Mass.) finished just short of a double-double with nine points and a game-high 12 rebounds to go with two assists and a pair of blocks.

Graduate student guard Nate Martin (Washington, D.C.) led Emerson with 24 points on 8-12 from the field and was flawless at the line, making all six tries in addition to dishing out two assists and making a steal. Graduate student center Jarred Houston (Norwood, Mass.) dropped in 23 points on 8-12 from the floor and 7-8 from the line to go with 12 rebounds, four assists and a steal. Senior guard Max Davis (Oakland, Calif.) contributed with 16 points, four rebounds two assists, a pair of steals and a blocked shot.

Williams made a layup to pull the Lyons even at 74-74 with 4:01 to play in the game, before Martin drained a three-pointer to give the Lions a 77-74 lead with 3:41 showing in the second half. Emerson never trailed after that and later owned an 82-77 margin following a Davis trifecta at the 2:21 mark. Carlisle later converted a layup with 52 ticks left on the clock to cut the deficit to 82-81 for Wheaton, but it was as close as the visitors would get in the final seconds.

Cook gave the Lyons an early 8-7 edge following a free throw to complete a three-point play at the 16:05 mark of the opening half.

The Lions put together a 13-4 stretch, including five points from Houston, to take a 20-12 cushion with 11:12 to go in the first period. A Trevor Arico (Ann Arbor, Mich.) jumper extended the home team's lead to 26-16 with 7:58 to play in the half. 

Wheaton reclaimed the lead with a 15-4 blitz, fueled by a trio of three-pointers from Murphy, to take a 31-30 edge with 4:28 remaining in the first half. 

Emerson responded with nine unanswered points, capped by a three-ball from senior guard James Beckwith (Palo Alto, Calif.), to take a 39-31 advantage with 2:02 showing on the first half clock. The Lions took a 43-37 lead into the intermission.

The Lyons shot back with a 12-4 run to start the second stanza, including a pair of threes from Murphy to give them a 49-47 lead at 16:03 of the half.

Emerson answered the call again, scoring eight of the next 10 points to take a 55-51 lead with 14:49 left in the half. Carlisle netted eight points to pace a 12-4 run capped by a three-pointer from sophomore forward Khaled Thaher (Amman, Jordan) and give Wheaton a 63-59 lead as one of six lead changes in the final minutes of the contest.

The Lyons return to the court on Saturday, January 21 when they travel to Worcester, Mass. to take on NEWMAC rival Worcester Polytechnic Institute at 3:00 p.m., while the Lions host Massachusetts Institute of Technology on the same day at 1:00 p.m. in league action.