NORTON, Mass. — The Wheaton College (Mass.) men's basketball team fell in its season finale, 92-56, to host No. 17 Worcester Polytechnic Institute in New England Women's & Men's Athletic Conference play this afternoon at Harrington Auditorium in Worcester, Mass.
The Lyons slip to 11-14 overall and 6-10 in league play, while the Engineers, who are ranked in the most recent D3hoops.com national poll, extend their win streak to 15 straight for the second-longest string in school history and are now 23-2 to equal the best regular-season mark in program annals. WPI finished the conference slate at 15-1 to establish a school standard for conference victories.
The Engineers earn the top seed in the NEWMAC Championship Tournament and receive a first round bye, prior to hosting a semifinal tilt on February 27 at 7:00 p.m. when they will take on the winner of the number four seed Emerson College and fifth-seeded Springfield College.
WPI shot 55.2% (32-58) for the game, while committing just five turnovers. Wheaton was held to 33.3% (19-57) from the floor, including 5-30 (16.7%) from three-point range and struggled at the free throw line with a 54.2% (13-24) clip. The Engineers took advantage of 13 Lyon miscues, outscoring their guests, 24-2, in points off turnovers and owned a 16-4 fast break point differential.
Sophomore guard Dimetri Iafrate (Johnston, R.I.) led Wheaton with nine points, four rebounds and a pair of assists, while junior forward Eoin Morrissey (Watertown, Mass.) contributed with eight points, three boards and an assist.
Senior guard Aidan Callahan (Rowley, Mass.) and senior forward Brett Marelli (Hampton, N.H.) led all scorers with 16 points apiece for WPI. Callahan was 10-11 from the free throw line to go with five rebounds and five assists, while Marelli was 8-10 from the field in addition to grabbing four rebounds, handing out four assists and rejecting a shot. Sophomore guard Nathan Bledsoe (San Antonio, Texas) chipped in with 12 points, five rebounds and an assist.
Junior guard Sal Pedevillano (Parsippany, N.J.) completed a rare four-point play with a free throw following a three-pointer to give the Lyons a 9-5 lead at the 15:57 mark of the opening half. The advantage was short-lived for Wheaton after the Engineers responded with a 20-5 run, sparked by five points from sophomore guard Jack Bleier (Victor, N.Y.), to give the home team a 25-14 margin with 10:36 to play in the half. Marelli bumped the WPI lead to 32-18 with a layup, before the Lyons sliced the deficit to 36-28 at 4:15, following a 10-4 run that was led by six points from Morrissey.
First year guard Sean Perri (West Roxbury, Mass.) knocked down a jumper to keep Wheaton within eight at 38-30 with 3:07 remaining in the first session, but it was as close as the visitors would get for the remainder of the contest. The Engineers closed the half with an 11-2 burst, capped by a triple from Marelli, to give the home team a commanding 49-32 cushion at the intermission.
WPI carried its momentum into the second half with a 23-5 stretch, paced by six points each from Marelli, Callahan and a pair of trifectas from senior guard Tim Reidy (Needham, Mass.), to increase its advantage to 72-37 with 10:49 to play in the game. Senior forward Will Barton (Meriden, Conn.) converted a tip-in with 93 seconds left in the contest to give the Engineers their largest lead at 91-51.
