BOSTON, Mass. – Six players scored in double figures, including senior Kyle Romich (Groton, Mass.) and sophomore Jason Ganley (Northbridge, Mass.) who each tallied 14 points as the Wentworth Institute of Technology men's basketball team closed out first semester play with an 84-71 win over Lesley on Saturday afternoon.
Winners of two straight the Leopards even their record at 4-4 while the Lynx drop to 1-10.
The hosts led wire-to-wire and used a 17-2 run over a span of 7:10 to turn a one-point game into a 16-point contest. Wentworth pushed its lead to as many as 23 in the opening frame before taking a 44-24 lead at the break. In the first 20 minutes Romich and Ganley had nine and eight points, respectively, while holding Lesley to 26.1 percent from the floor. The Lynx were held without a field goal at one point for 10:10.
Freshman Xeo Golding (Windmere, Fla.) and junior Terrell Toney (Lakewood, Wash.) opened the second half for Lesley with consecutive baskets to pull within 16 before three pointers from sophomore Ben Kizel (Short Hills, N.J.) and senior Ian Therriault (Auburn, Maine) made it a 22-point contest.
Golding hit a pair of freebies before freshman Dylan Reno (Franklin, Mass.) countered with a layup. From there, the Lynx used an 11-2 run – capped off by a three pointer from Golding – to make it a 54-41 contest with 14:06 left. Romich answered with a trifecta of his own, however Lesley used an 11-3 run and trimmed the lead to eight on a pair of Golding free throws with 9:06 left.
Reno pushed the lead back into double figures when he buried a three and freshman Mahlik McLeod (Elmont, N.Y.) would bring Lesley back within single digits after hitting two free throws with 7:56 left.
Wentworth would build its lead back to as many as 15 with 3:45 left after a sophomore Cesar Fulcar (Watertown, Mass.) basket. Lesley came within 10 with 1:31 left but would get no closer.
In addition to his 14 points, Romich had six rebounds, five assists, and a pair of steals. Kizel added 13 points, Reno had 12 points, six rebounds, and five assists, freshman Jack Buckley (Hanover, Mass.) had 11 points (on 5-for-7 shooting) and six rebounds, and Therriault scored 10 points, grabbed nine boards, and dished out three assists.
Junior Devon Mayo (Newport News, Va.) led all scorers with 18 points to go along with seven rebounds, five assists, and three steals. Toney finished with 10 points.
Wentworth is at the Clark Holiday Tournament on December 29, facing the host Cougars at Noon. Lesley is idle until January 9, when the Lynx host Becker.
