WORCESTER – Sophomore Aaron Todd (York, ME) came off the bench to score 10 of his 14 points in the second half as nationally-ranked WPI defeated Framingham State, 59-50, in a non-conference men's basketball contest Thursday night at Harrington Auditorium.
Junior Daniel Gould (Quincy, MA) and senior Jacek Louisville (Worcester, MA/Holy Name) each drained a 3-pointer as the Rams opened the second half with a 7-0 spurt to cut the deficit to 36-26. Todd then posted eight of the Engineers next 10 points to give the Engineers the 46-34 advantage with 8:54 to play. During Todd's outburst, Framingham State freshman Brian James (Scituate, MA) capitalized on a traditional 3-point play to get the Rams under 10 with exactly 13 minutes remaining. Senior Tim McCarthy (Wilmington, MA) went on a personal eight-point run, including a pair of triples, as the visitors trailed 48-37 with 7:34 on the clock. McCarthy's three with 1:03 left brought the Rams within six. Last minute fouls yielded six points for the Engineers while sophomore Tony Alexandre (Hyde Park, MA) made a layup with 29 seconds left and the back end of a double bonus with 17 seconds to play.
WPI, keyed by a pair of buckets by junior Ian Converse (Woodstock, CT) and a triple, to go along with two helpers, by senior Aaron Davis (Marshfield, MA), charged out to a 13-0 advantage 2:30 into the game. Nearly two minutes later, Alexandre knocked down a pair of free throws to break the ice with 15:40 left in the half. He went on to score the next six points for the guests as the margin remained in double digits until midway through the second half.
Converse paced all players with 16 points as junior Sean Doncaster (Medford, MA) added 10 to go with four assists for the Engineers. Sophomore Obi Obiora (Boston, MA) pulled down seven boards followed by Todd with six. Senior Clyde Niba (Atlanta, GA) pitched in with nine points and five rebounds. Davis collected three of the team's four steals. For the game, the Crimson and Gray had the advantage in rebounds (35-29), second chance points (14-8) and bench points (16-8).
Alexandre logged a double-double with 13 points and 10 rebounds while McCarthy finished with a team-high 14 points. Gould handed out four assists and Lousiville chipped in with three. Daniel and junior Patrick Gould (Quincy, MA) each were credited with a pair of steals, as was Alexandre.
WPI (7-0), who is ranked No. 13 in the latest D3hoops.com Top 25, wraps up a six-game homestand Saturday with a 2pm meeting with Fitchburg State. The Rams (1-6) head to MIT for a 1pm tip, also on Saturday.
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