WORCESTER -- Tim Reidy (Needham, MA) dropped 22 points and Brett Marelli (Hampton, NH) equaled his career-high of 17 as nationally-ranked WPI pulled ahead late in the first half and cruised to a 72-46 victory over visiting Emerson in a NEWMAC men's basketball contest played Wednesday evening inside Harrington Auditorium. 

The Crimson and Gtra, winners of eleven consecutive contests and ranked 17th in the latest D3hoops.com Top 25, is now 19-2 overall and 11-1 in NEWMAC action. The 11 straight triumphs is the tied for the seventh-longest streak in the over 100-year history of WPI men's basketball.  Emerson dips to 8-12 on the season and 3-8 in conference play.  

The Lions struck first on the scoreboard with a layup from Trevor Arico (Saline, MI), but the Engineers quickly responded as Reidy drove inside for a layup of his own. The teams traded baskets in a defense driven start before WPI grabbed its first lead of the game, as Marelli sank both free throws to put the Engineers ahead 8-6 with 15:05 remaining in the first half. 

With 13:08 on the clock, Reidy banked in a three-pointer to give the hosts a 11-8 edge, but Emerson quickly seized momentum with an 8-0 run. The surge began and ended with a three-pointer, with Linus Helmhold (Krefeld, Germany) adding a perfect trip to the free-throw line in between, lifting the visitors to a 16-11 advantage with just over 10 minutes left. WPI battled back, trimming the deficit to one after an Aidan Callahan (Rowley, MA) jumper, but the Lions answered as Shay Roban (Long Island, NY) converted a three-point play off an offensive rebound. The Engineers responded, as Marelli drilled a three, then came up with a steal that set up another triple from Reidy, putting WPI back on top, 21-19, with 8:17 left in the first half. 

WPI erupted for an 8-0 run, building their biggest lead of the game. Callahan kicked things off with a three-pointer, followed by a turnaround jumper from Marelli, before Reidy capped the surge with a deep triple, pushing the Engineers ahead 32-23 with 5:39 remaining in the half. The teams traded baskets over the next three minutes, but Nicholas Margetson (Baldwin, NY) delivered a three-pointer to give WPI the first double-digit lead of the game at 38-28. The Engineers carried that momentum into the break, heading to the locker room with a 45-32 advantage. 

For the first half, WPI started things off shooting 1-of-6 from behind the arc, but then saw five triples in a row, and ended the half shooting 9-of-16, with Reidy accounting for four of the treys. Reidy led WPI with 16 of the first half points and four boards. Marelli tallied 11 points and three rebounds, and J.R. Newman (Havertown, PA) added 10 points and a block. 

For the Lions, Jacob Armant (Arlington, TX), Arico, and Helmhold all contributed eight points, with Roban adding another six points. Arico and Helmhold each grabbed three boards.

Marelli set the tone for the second half, driving to the rim for a layup, but Emerson quickly responded as Asher Gardiner (Christchurch, New Zealand) answered with a smooth hook shot on the other end. Both teams then went cold, enduring six scoreless possessions before Marelli ended the drought with another layup, extending WPI's lead to 49-34 with 16:43 remaining. 

WPI struggled from beyond the arc to start the second half, missing their first four three-point attempts, but Reidy broke the slump at the 15:00 mark, drilling a trey to extend the lead to 54-39. Emerson responded with a surge, as Guillermo Gasset Ruiz (Malaga, Spain) scored on back-to-back possessions with a pull-up jumper and a three-pointer, followed by a layup from Hank Gramlich (Dallas, TX), cutting the visitors' deficit to just eight at 54-46 with 12:17 remaining. 

Both teams hit another scoring drought from 11:51 to 9:28, before Newman broke the silence with a pull-up jumper. On the following possession, Callahan knocked down both free throws, stretching WPI's lead to 14 at 60-46 with 8:30 left. Callahan continued to take over, scoring the next five points, including a three-point play, widening the gap to 65-46 with just 5:08 remaining. The Engineers continued to widen their lead, with the final score ending at 72-46.

Reidy led the Engineers with a skillful 22 points, including 6-of-9 from behind the arc, and grabbed six boards. Marelli tied his career-high of 17 points and added seven rebounds. Newman notched 14 points and a block, and Callahan tallied 12 points and five assists. For the Lions, Armant, Arico, and Helmhold all finished with eight points apiece, with Gasset Ruiz adding seven points. Arico corralled six rebounds, Gardiner had a block, and Lucas Brenner (Miami, FL) contributed three assists and a steal.

WPI made 48.2% (27-of-56) of field goals and limited Emerson to making 16-of-49 (32.7%) from the court. WPI held an advantage in made treys, 11-4, and points in the paint, 30-16.

Both squads next contest is against Clark in a NEWMAC matchup. Emerson hosts the Cougars on Saturday for a 1pm affair, while WPI takes a week hiatus and continues next Wednesday at 7pm by traveling down Park Ave to face the Worcester-foe. 

Recap written by WPI Sports Information Student Assistant Maya Vartabedian '24 '25