MOUNT IDA MEN'S BASKETBALL
Thursday, January 25, 2018
Athletic Center, Newton, Mass.
FINAL: JOHNSON & WALES 102, MOUNT IDA 81
NEWTON, Mass. -- Junior Brian Hogan-Gary (Staten Island, N.Y.) recorded a double-double effort of 27 points, 14 rebounds, eight assists and three steals to lead five players in double figures as Johnson & Wales scored 40 points in the final 10:47 of action to post a 102-81 Great Northeast Athletic Conference men's basketball victory over Mount Ida Thursday evening at the Athletic Center.
The visiting Wildcats (9-8, 6-2 GNAC) turned an early six-point deficit into a 10-point lead (34-24) on a three-pointer by freshman Nate Patenaude (Smithfield, R.I.) with 6:50 remaining in the opening half, but the host Mustangs (9-9, 3-6 GNAC) closed the first frame on a 21-10 run to grab a 45-44 edge at the break on the strength of 27 combined points from senior John Oliver (North Babylon, N.Y.) and sophomore Kevin Vanderhorst (Lawrence, Mass.).
Mount Ida held on to that one point advantage in the opening six minutes after intermission before Johnson & Wales took a five-point lead on a pair of free throws by freshman Donovian Maxfield (York Pa.) with 13:05 remaining, and after the hosts closed back to within one (62-61) on a lay-in by freshman Kevin Nunez (Dorchester, Mass.), the Wildcats scored 14 of the game's next 16 points to take a 76-63 edge on Hogan-Gary's lay-in with 8:33 to play. The Mustangs cut that margin back to nine on senior Errald Jordine's (Stamford, Conn.) three-pointer, but the visitors iced their triumph by finishing the game on a 24-12 run fueled by a trio of Maxfield three-pointers to account for the final margin.
Junior Randall Ferdinand (Pembroke Pines, Fla.) added 22 points, five rebounds and a pair of assists in the win for Johnson & Wales, which received 15 points from Maxfield along with 11 points, seven boards, three assists and a pair of steals from junior Matt Madoian (North Kingstown, R.I.). Patenaude rounded out the quintet of Wildcats in double figures with 10 points and nine rebounds, as the visitors blistered the nets at a 63 percent clip (22-35) in the second half and shot 56 percent overall (40-72) for the contest. Senior Jarell Lawson (Providence, R.I.) chipped in with eight points and five caroms for Johnson & Wales, which connected for nine three-pointers and held a 51-33 rebounding edge on the night while scoring 56 points in the paint overall.
Oliver led four players in double figures with 17 points, three rebounds and three steals in the setback for Mount Ida, which received 14 points (including four three-pointers) and three boards from senior Brendan Cunningham (Quincy, Mass.). Vanderhorst added 13 points, eight rebounds and three assists for the Mustangs, who also received 13 points and five caroms from Jordine. Senior Jayson Clark (Austin, Tex.) chipped in with eight points, six rebounds, six assists and three steals for the hosts, who received six points from Nunez to go with five points each from seniors Joey DeFillippi (Bristol, Conn.) and Kevin Conner (Mansfield, Mass.). Mount Ida shot 37 percent (27-72) from the floor overall and canned 10 from behind the arc on the night, as the Mustangs converted 19 Johnson & Wales turnovers into 22 points.
Mount Ida heads into Boston on Saturday afternoon to take on Suffolk in a Great Northeast Athletic Conference clash that tips-off at 3:00 p.m., while Johnson & Wales hosts Anna Maria in a GNAC outing on Saturday afternoon in Providence, R.I. beginning at 5:00 p.m.