BABSON PARK, Mass. -- Junior guard Ty Murphy (Dedham, Mass.) poured in a career-high 30 points, but the Wheaton College (Mass.) men's basketball team fell 76-65 to host Babson College this evening in New England Women's & Men's Athletic Conference play at Staake Gymnasium in Babson Park, Mass.

The Lyons slip to 8-5 overall and 2-3 in league play, while the Beavers improve to 7-8 and 3-3.

Babson shot 40.3% (25-62) from the floor and made 27 trips to the free throw line, while converting 18 times. The Beavers controlled the glass with a 46-36 margin and outscored their guests, 15-4, in second chance points. Wheaton struggled with a 35.5% (24-68) field goal percentage, but was 9-11 (81.8%) from the line.

Murphy canned a career-best seven three-pointers and added three rebounds, two assists and a steal for the Lyons. Sophomore forward Eoin Morrissey (Watertown, Mass.) nearly posted his second double-double in as many games with eight points and 10 rebounds, while first year guard Dimetri Iafrate (Johnston, R.I.) chipped in with six points, three assists, five rebounds and a steal.

Junior guard Nate Amado (Hanson, Mass.) went shot for shot with Murphy, finishing with 29 points on 12-20 shooting to lead Babson. He also grabbed eight rebounds, blocked three shots, came up with a pair of steals and handed out an assist. Sophomore forward Jeremiah Paul (Los Angeles, Calif.) contributed with 10 points and senior guard John Gorgol (Scottsdale, Ariz.) scored six points, pulled down 11 rebounds, dished out four assists and made a steal.

The Beavers led from start to finish, scoring the game's first 10 points as part of a 19-5 stretch over the opening 10-plus minutes of the game. Amado fueled the opening salvo with nine points and Gorgol scored all his points with a pair of three-pointers to back the home team. First year guard Markus Nordin (Wenham, Mass.) hit a triple and Morrissey converted a layup to cut the deficit to 21-10 for Wheaton with 8:38 to play in the first stanza.

Babson dug a deeper hole for the Lyons with 12 unanswered points to take its largest lead of the night at 33-10 with 6:20 left in the half, led by eight points from Amado. Wheaton responded with eight straight points, capped by a jumper from sophomore guard Sal Pedevillano (Parsippany, N.J.) to pull the Lyons within 33-18 at the 3:23 mark of the first half. Murphy scored the final five points of the half for Wheaton to keep the margin at 37-23 at the intermission.

Murphy continued his hot shooting into the second half, knocking down a trifecta with 17:04 showing on the second half clock to cut the deficit to 45-34 for Wheaton.

Sophomore guard JoJo Chalumeau (Hyde Park, Mass.) made a layup to boost the Beavers' advantage to 48-34 with 16:04 remaining in the contest, but the Lyons came alive, ripping off nine straight points, including a three-ball from Murphy to make it a two-possession game at 48-43 with 12:06 to play in the game. It was as close as Wheaton would get.

Babson put some distance between itself and its NEWMAC rival with a 14-4 stretch, led by five points from Paul, to increase the Beavers' cushion to 62-47 with 4:15 left in the final half. Amado later made a layup to keep Babson in front, 66-50, at the 3:44 mark, before the Lyons roared back with an 11-5 burst, capped by a Morrissey layup to make it 71-61 with 2:23 remaining in the contest. 

The teams traded pockets of unanswered points – five for the Beavers and four for Wheaton – before Babson came away with the victory. 

The Lyons return to action on Saturday, January 13 when they travel to Boston, Mass. for NEWMAC action against Emerson College at 1:00 p.m., while the Beavers head to Newport, R.I. on January 16 to play Salve Regina University at 7:00 p.m.