BABSON PARK, Mass.—Senior Ryan Fogarty (Walpole, Mass.) hit the go-ahead three-pointer with 1:40 to go as visiting Wheaton College defeated Babson College, 76-69, in New England Women's and Men's Athletic Conference (NEWMAC) men's basketball action on Saturday afternoon at Staake Gymnasium.
Babson, which entered the day having won five straight games, falls to 14-9 overall and 9-3 in league play, while Wheaton improves to 14-9 overall and 6-6 in the NEWMAC.
Senior Nick Comenale (New York Mills, N.Y.) finished with 23 points on 9-of-14 shooting to go along with five rebounds and five assists in his final regular season home game. Classmate Bradley Jacks (Fort Washington, Md.) added 14 points and four blocks, while junior Brandon Johnson (Mount Vernon, N.Y.) added 10 points for the Beavers.
Senior Liam Bruno (Newton, Mass.) knocked down five three-pointers and finished with a game-high 25 points to lead the Lyons. Fogarty finished with 19 points and nine rebounds, and sophomore Alex DuBrow (Foxboro, Mass.) added nine points, five assists and two steals off the bench.
The Green and White made six of its first 10 shots, including a pair of three-pointers by senior Brian Kelley (Potomac, Md.) to build a 15-6 advantage less than seven minutes into the contest. Jacks connected on a pair of free throws to make it 28-20 at the 6:17 mark, but Wheaton scored on eight of its final 11 possessions of the stanza and used an 18-7 run to build a 38-35 lead at the break.
The Beavers got points on seven of their first eight possessions to open the second half and went back in front 49-47 on a layup by Johnson with 15:13 remaining. The Lyons responded though, ripping off an 8-0 run that included a triple from Fogarty and a three-point play by Bruno to make it 55-49 less than 90 seconds later.
Babson tied the game at 60 with 7:35 left and then got a three-pointer from Comenale and consecutive hoops from graduate student Tim Hasbargen (Munich, Germany) and Jacks to make it 69-69 with 2:08 left. Fogarty buried a three-pointer from the top of the key on the ensuing possession, and the Beavers came up empty on three straight trips before the Lyons iced their win with four free throws over the final seven seconds of regulation.
The Green and White shot 46.4 percent and held a 32-28 edge in paint scoring, while Wheaton shot 15-of-17 (88.2 percent) at the charity stripe.
Both teams return to action on Wednesday as Babson travels to Emerson at 7:30 p.m., while Wheaton visits Coast Guard at 5:30 p.m.
GAME NOTES
• The Beavers are 34-14 all-time against Wheaton but were swept by the Lyons in the regular season series for the first time since the 2005-06 campaign.
• Saturday's loss snapped a 29-game NEWMAC regular season winning streak in the month of February going back to 2013.
• The Green and White is now just 5-9 this season when allowing 70 points or more.
• With four blocks on Saturday, Jacks is now third in program history with 73 career rejections.