NEWTON, Mass. – In their first game of the 2013-14 season at Mount Ida Athletic Center on Saturday afternoon, the Mount Ida men's basketball team suffered a 66-52 defeat to visiting non-conference foe Framingham State, despite a game-high 18 points from Mustangs junior Treace Macklin (Brockton, Mass.).
Macklin shot 6-for-14 from the field and made two of his three attempts from beyond the three-point line, but Mount Ida could not overcome a 40-25 halftime deficit, and falls to 1-3 on the season.
Framingham State bounces back from their first loss of the year to improve to 4-1 overall.
Mount Ida shot exactly the same from the field (9-26, 34.6%) in each half, while the Rams started the game hot, hitting 45.7% of their shots before the break and then cooled down (25.7%) in the second half, settling for a similar shooting percentage to the Mustangs by the end of the game.
The Rams were led by 15 points apiece from Joseph McCabe (Canton, Mass.) and Timothy McCarthy (Wilmington, Mass.), who combined to shoot 11-19 from the field and hit five three-pointers.
Also on target from long-range was Framingham State freshman Daniel Gould (Quincy, Mass.), who hit twice from downtown and netted 14 points off of the bench.
For the Mustangs, sophomore forward Cam Walker (New Bedford, Mass.), averaging over 30 points a game, was held in check, scoring just 11 points, though he did lead the team in rebounds (8) and steals (4).
Walker also co-led the team in blocks, as he and Macklin had two apiece, and assists, where he was joined with four by freshman guard Nathan Bueno (Methuen, Mass.).
Junior Everett Ramirez (Los Angeles, Calif.) was the other Mustang in double-figures with 10 points, pairing with five rebounds and two steals.
The visitors had a 50-35 edge in rebounding, led by nine boards from Patrick Cuff (Medway, Mass.), and eight rebounds apiece from freshman Charles Collins (Lynn, Mass.) and Jamie Henderson (Cedar Hill, Texas).
Collins also dished out a game-high six assists and led the Rams with four steals, while Cuff blocked three shots and Henderson added eight points off the bench.
Mount Ida will enjoy the Thanksgiving break before travelling to Lowell on December 3rd for the unique opportunity to play Division 1 UMass Lowell. That game will tip-off at 2:00 pm on Tuesday afternoon.
The Rams are also off until the Tuesday after Thanksgiving, and they will also be on the road, travelling to play Western Connecticut State in a 7:00 pm game.