NORTON, MA- Junior Brendan Degnan (Narragansett, RI/Bishop Hendricken) sank a pair of free throws with 3.5 seconds remaining to earn the Wheaton College men's basketball team a 63-61 come-from-behind victory over New England Women's and Men's Athletic Conference (NEWMAC) rival Springfield College on Thursday night in Emerson Gymnasium.
Winning for the sixth time in their last seven games while picking up their first home victory, the Lyons improved to 6-7 overall and 2-1 in the NEWMAC. The Pride, which entered tonight's action a winner in nine of its last 11 contests, fell to 9-6 and 2-1.
Degnan's free throws capped a furious comeback from the Lyons, who found themselves down six points with just 2:31 remaining in the game. He finished the night with 15 points, while senior Anthony Coppola (Watertown, MA/Watertown) added a game-high 24 points. Degnan and junior Shawn Daily (Mount Vernon, NY/Mount Saint Michael Academy) each pulled down five boards, as the hosts held a 29-23 advantage on the glass. Freshman Brian Grossman (Duxbury, MA/Duxbury) added a season-best nine points.
Springfield was paced by 11 points and five steals from senior Billy Harkins (Bellmore, KY/Kellenberg), who saw all but two of his points come from the charity stripe. Classmate Matthew Cavalieri (West Warwick, RI/West Warwick) posted 11 points and a game-high six rebounds, while junior Ryan Coburn (West Warwick, RI/West Warwick) had nine points. Rounding out the box score, sophomore Pat Rossi (Rock Tavern, NY/Washingtonville) notched eight points, and junior Jordan Rote (Sheffield, MA/Mount Everett) and sophomore Trevor DiMicco (Coventry, RI/Coventry) each tallied seven.
With the teams tied at 18 approaching the midway point of the first period, the Pride used a 17-7 run to build a 10-point lead with just 1:18 remaining. Cavalieri notched five points during the stretch, as the visitors held Wheaton to just two field goals in over 13 minutes of play. Degnan closed the gap over the final minute of the frame, connecting on two free throws before hitting a three at the buzzer to send the game into the locker room with Springfield holding on to a 35-30 lead.
The Lyons erased the deficit early in the second half, opening with a 12-1 run to take a 42-36 lead with 14:57 remaining. Springfield inched back to tie the contest at 51 after a Rossi jumper at 8:23 and then used solid free throw shooting to regain a lead, this time going up six points with 2:31 left.
Wheaton's comeback started when Coppola hit a three to cut the deficit in half, grabbed a defensive rebound and then sank two free throws to move the score to 59-58 with 1:43 to go. After Harkins converted both of his freebies, Degnan's trey tied it at 61 with just over a minute remaining. The Pride had a chance to go ahead by two with 28 ticks on the clock, but Degnan grabbed the defensive board to give the Lyons their final possession and set up his game-winning free throws. A desperation jumper from Springfield fell just short at the buzzer.
Wheaton returns to the road on Saturday, taking on league foe Babson College at 2:00 p.m.