BOSTON, Mass. – The Emmanuel College men's basketball team lost to No. 20 Amherst College, 79-52 on Tuesday evening at the Jean Yawkey Center in Boston, Mass.
The Saints dropped to 2-4 on the season while Amherst improved to 7-0.
The Lord Jeffs grabbed a quick, 4-0 lead on the hosts, but the Saints found their footing and pulled back to within one to make the score 16-15. A smooth three-pointer by sophomore Michael Mailhot (Norwich, Conn.) and fade-away by freshman Josh Welles (Philadelphia, Pa.) helped give Emmanuel a much needed boost just passed the halfway point of the period.
A fast-break layup off of a defensive rebound by sophomore Xavier Everson (Rochester, N.Y.) added to the Saints' offense and made the score 20-17 for Amherst.
Two free-throws by freshman Aaron Toomey (Greensboro, N.C.) gave the Lord Jeffs a 26-20 edge and a rebound and layup by sophomore Allen Williamson (Saugus, Mass.) followed soon after to stretch the lead to eight and set up an 11-3 run by Amherst.
The two squads closed out the half with a 38-28 score in favor of the Lord Jeffs.
Sophomore Willy Workman (Northampton, Mass.) led all scorers with nine points in the opening half with Williamson tallying five rebounds as well. For the Saints, Everson notched eight points while also adding three rebounds.
The Lord Jeffs doubled Emmanuel's points in the paint with a tally of 12-6 while also putting up eight points off of turnovers compared to the Saints' three.
Emmanuel went 2-6 from three-point range, while also going 11-32 from the floor.
Amherst opened the second half with nine straight points off the opening horn. Junior Isaiah Duke (Albany, N.Y.) gave the Saints their first points of the half at the 15:53 mark with a layup and one.
Freshman Theo Robinson (Springfield, Mass.) added two more to the Saints and Everson hit a fade-away not long after, but the Lord Jeffs continued to press, earning a 52-34 edge at 13:30.
Junior Andre Fuller (Troy, N.Y.) grabbed a layup and one, with Everson taking the missed layup and converting an extra two points.
Toomey added three to the Amherst cause with a deep trey from the far side of the arc to give the Lord Jeffs a 61-43 edge.
Another three by Mailhot from the corner and an ensuing jumper helped the host's cause, but Amherst had extended its lead and ultimately won the game, 79-52.
Sophomore Peter Kaasila (Plaistow, N.H.) led all scorers with 22 points on the night, while Everson led the Saints with 12. Freshman D.J. Fazio (Methuen, Mass.) led the hosts with six rebounds.
The Lord Jeffs scored 32 points in the paint while Emmanuel managed to notch 14. Amherst also moved the ball well on the night, tallying 23 assists on its 27 field goals for the game. Junior Taylor Barrise (Allendale, N.J.) hit four three-pointers for the Lord Jeffs.
The Saints will next play this Saturday at 1:00 p.m. at Albertus Magnus College.