CAMBRIDGE, Mass. – MIT broke open a close game by out scoring Framingham State University, 13-2, over the final five minutes to pull away to a 63-52 non-conference men's basketball win. Freshman Bradley Jomard (Paris, France) led MIT with his fourth double-double of the season, a 19 point and 11 rebound performance, while sophomore Tony Alexandre (Hyde Park, Mass.) led all players with 25 points for Framingham State.
MIT (17-5) had a six-point lead five minutes in, but Framingham State (4-19) came back and eventually took a 14-12 lead when senior Tim McCarthy (Wilmington, Mass.) connected on a jumper at the 10:18 mark. Senior Justin Pedley (Kennewick, Wash.) answered for MIT with a jump shot to tie it, starting a 10-0 run over a nearly five-minute span for the Engineers that gave them a 22-14 lead on a jumper by freshman Cameron Korb (Los Gatos, Calif.). MIT had its lead up to as many as nine points, but could not pull away and took a 30-23 lead into the locker room at the half.
Framingham State closed to within four in the first minute of the second half after a free throw from Alexandre, but MIT scored nine straight, pulling out to a 39-26 lead after a three-point shot fell for Jomard four and a half minutes in. The Engineers still led by 12 at 43-31 with 13:17 left when the Rams started to chip away at their deficit. McCarthy hit a three-point shot to bring the MIT lead back under ten and it started a 7-0 stretch for Framingham State that had them back within five at 43-38 when Alexandre hit a jumper off an offensive rebound.
Jomard hit a jumper to halt the run but the Rams scored seven straight again, knotting the game at 45-all when Alexandre converted a three-point play with seven minutes left. Neither side could pull away over the next two minutes and when McCarthy hit another trey at the five minute mark, the game was tied again, this time at 50-50.
McCarthy's basket turned out to be the final one for the Rams until the final seconds as they missed five straight shots and turned the ball over three times over a four and a half minute stretch. A pair of free throws from freshman Tim Roberts (Oak Bluffs, Mass.) broke the tie and gave MIT a lead it would not give up. The game was won at the free throw line where the Engineers connected on 11-of-12 in the pivotal final five minutes to clinch it, with Roberts and senior Ryan Frankel (New York, N.Y.) both going 4-for-4 in the stretch to help deliver the victory.
Frankel joined Jomard in double figures in scoring, finishing with 13 points and three assists. Senior Lampros Tsontzos (Amarousion, Greece) matched Jomard for the team lead with 11 rebounds along with four blocks, helping MIT to a 36-26 advantage on the boards. From the free throw line the Engineers hit on 20 of 25 attempts, out scoring their opponent by 13 points. McCarthy finished with 14 points for Framingham State; with Alexandre leading the Rams with eight rebounds and four steals.
MIT will be back in action tomorrow, traveling to Wheaton College for a 1:00 p.m. New England Women's and Men's Athletic Conference (NEWMAC) contest. Framingham State will not play again until February 17 when the Rams will host Worcester State University at 8:00 p.m.