MOUNT IDA MEN'S BASKETBALL
Thursday, November 30, 2017
Athletic Center, Newton, Mass.
FINAL: MOUNT IDA 95, WHEELOCK 76
NEWTON, Mass. -- Freshman Jonathan Friberg (North Attleboro, Mass.) scored 19 points, while sophomore Kevin Vanderhorst (Lawrence, Mass.) added a double-double effort of 13 points and 21 rebounds to lead Mount Ida to a 95-76 non-league college men's basketball victory over Wheelock Thursday evening at the Athletic Center.
The host Mustangs (3-2) scored 12 of the game's first 14 points and jumped out to a 22-7 advantage in the opening 7:16 of action, as Mount Ida blistered the nets at a 58 percent clip (25-43) in the first half to take a 60-35 edge at the break. The hosts maintained no less than a 20 point second half lead before the visiting Wildcats (1-4) used a late 12-1 run over a 2:33 stretch to close back to within 12 (88-76) on a three-pointer by junior Kadeem Apply (Lauderdale Lakes, Fla.), but the Mustangs iced their triumph by scoring the final seven points of the night that included three Friberg lay-ins to account for the final margin.
Mount Ida set a school single-game rebounding record by grabbing 65 caroms for the contest, topping the old mark of 60 boards set against Anna Maria on November 23, 1999, as the Mustangs matched Wheelock's entire rebounding effort (43) on the defensive glass alone. Vanderhorst's 21 boards also matched the second highest individual game total in school history, as he corralled all but six of his rebounds on the defensive side. Senior Joey DeFillippi (Bristol, Conn.) and junior Dennis Ross (Portland, Maine) rounded out a quartet in double figures by scoring 13 points each for the winners, who received nine points each and a combined 13 rebounds from senior Errald Jordine (Stamford, Conn.) and freshman Kevin Nunez (Dorchester, Mass.). Senior Jayson Clark (Austin, Tex.) chipped in with seven points and four steals for Mount Ida, which shot 43 percent (36-84) from the field overall and connected for nine three-pointers for the contest.
Apply scored a game-high 21 points (including four three-pointers) to lead four players in double figures in the setback for Wheelock, which received double-double efforts of 18 points and 12 rebounds from senior Kiwane Crowder (Milwaukee, Wis.) as well as 12 points and 11 boards from freshman Brendan Miller (Tampa, Fla.). Freshman Erick Hernandez (Tampa, Fla.) added 15 points and six caroms for the Wildcats, who shot 32 percent (25-77) from the field and canned 10 from behind the arc on the night but were outscored by 30 points (50-20) in the paint while allowing 24 second chance points.
Mount Ida heads into Boston on Saturday afternoon to take on Emmanuel in the Great Northeast Athletic Conference opener for both teams at 3:30 p.m., while Wheelock hosts Suffolk in a non-league outing on Monday evening in Boston beginning at 7:30 p.m.