NORTON, Mass. – First year guard Dimetri Iafrate (Johnston, R.I.) converted two free throws with 1.2 seconds to play as part of a career-high 19 points to lead the Wheaton College (Mass.) men's basketball team to a 68-66 upset victory over No. 23 Clark University this afternoon in New England Women's & Men's Athletic Conference play at Emerson Gymnasium on the Wheaton campus in Norton, Mass.

The Lyons improve to 10-7 overall and 4-5 in NEWMAC action, while the Cougars, who are ranked in the most recent D3hoops.com national poll, suffer their first loss in conference play to dip to 8-1 as part of a 14-4 overall mark.

Clark trailed by nine points with just over five minutes to play in the game, before chipping away and pulling even with 22 seconds left in the game. Iafrate sank both free throws to give the Lyons a 68-66 lead with a hair over one second to play in the game. The Cougars inbounded to the front court and called timeout right away to leave them with 0.8 seconds to attempt a tying or winning shot. Junior guard Isaiah Taylor's (Methuen, Mass.) heave from the right side was off the mark, leaving Wheaton with the win.

The Lyons shot 42.6% (23-54) for the game, despite being held to 35.7% (10-28) in the second half after hitting half of their shots in the opening stanza. Clark posted a 28.2% (11-39) first half figure and finished the contest with a 35.4% (23-65) mark. The Cougars outrebounded Wheaton, 40-37, but the Lyons corralled 12 offensive boards and outscored their guests, 14-8 in second chance points.

Iafrate was 7-12 from the floor and added three assists, four rebounds, a steal and a block for Wheaton. Sophomore guard Sal Pedevillano (Parsippany, N.J.) netted 14 points, including a trio of three balls on four attempts in addition to grabbing four rebounds and handing out an assist. Senior guard Jaden Keliher (Amesbury, Mass.) chipped in with 10 points, three rebounds and an assist. 

Junior guard Bruce Saintilus (Plainville, Mass.) led Clark with 16 points on 5-9 from the floor to go with five rebounds, four steals and two assists, while sophomore guard Reid Neumann (Burbank, Calif.) contributed with 15 points – all coming on five triples – and added two rebounds, three blocks and a steal. Taylor finished with nine points, seven boards, three assists and a steal.

The Cougars faced a 64-55 deficit with 5:18 showing on the second half clock, before holding the Lyons to just two points over the next 5:16, while senior guard Mikey O'Brien (New York, N.Y.) scored five points to fuel an 11-2 run to pull Clark even.

The Cougars scored the first seven points of the game and owned a 9-4 margin with 16:06 to go in the opening half. Wheaton put together a 17-5 stretch, paced by five points from Keliher, to take a 21-14 advantage with 9:18 to play in the half. Clark ripped off five straight points to make it a two-point game, before the Lyons answered with eight points in a row capped by a trifecta from sophomore guard Tristan Herry (East Taunton, Mass.) to give the home team a 28-19 cushion with 6:05 showing on the first half clock. 

The Cougars scored eight of the next 10 points, including a three-pointer from first year guard Quentin Pridgen (Fitchburg, Mass.) to cut the deficit to 30-27 with 3:04 remaining in the opening session. Pedevillano canned a pair of free throws for the final points of the half to give Wheaton a 37-31 lead heading into the break.

Neumann drilled a pair of triples and Saintillus knocked down a three-pointer just over three minutes into the second half to pull Clark even at 42-42 with 16:53 left in the second half. Junior forward Tarmo Tari (Chelmsford, Mass.) buried a three-pointer at the 14:53 mark to put the home team up 47-42, but the Cougars scored nine of the next 10 points, capped by a floating jumper from Saintillus to give them a 51-48 margin at 11:21. Clark maintained a 53-50 lead with 10:28 showing, before a 14-2 run, punctuated by a Pedevillano triple, gave the Lyons a 64-55 cushion with 5:18 remaining in the game.

Wheaton returns to play on Wednesday, January 24 when it heads to Cambridge, Mass. to play Massachusetts Institute of Technology in league play at 6:00 p.m., while the Cougars host Salve Regina University on the same night at 5:00 p.m.