Men’s Basketball Tops Westfield State, 69-60

WORCESTER, Mass. – Four Worcester State University men's basketball players scored in double figures Thursday evening to help defeat the visiting Westfield State Owls 69-60 in a Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference (MASCAC) contest.

With the win, the Lancers improve to 5-13 and 3-3 in the MASCAC, while the Owls slip to 5-12 and 2-4 in conference play.

A trio of Lancers scored 12 points apiece, including Corey Gatta (Sturbridge, Mass.), Jeremy Bacon (Milford, Mass.), and Paul Brooks (Arlington, Mass.). Also scoring double figures was junior guard Jamal Mustapha (Worcester, Mass.) who tallied 10 points – eight of which came from the free throw line. Brooks connected on 6-of-8 field goals to tally his 12 points and also picked up eight boards. Bacon led the Blue and Gold in rebounds, and was just one shy of a double-double with nine.

Leading the Owls in scoring were Shane Pasquantonio (Ashland, Mass.) and Marcus Collins (Cambridge, Mass.) who collected 10 points apiece. Austin Joseph (Rockland, Mass.) and Jesus Sanchez (Springfield, Mass.) put up nine each, while Peter Mafo (Lynn, Mass.) recorded eight points. Collins led Westfield on the boards with seven.

Following a quick layup from Joseph just seconds into the game, Worcester State went on a 10-0 run get a quick 8-point advantage on the Owls. Worcester State kept a slight advantage on Westfield until Jose Allen (Amherst, Mass.) and Mafo made back-to-back three's to cut their deficit to just one with 8:22 remaining in the first half.

The Owls regained the lead two minutes later, however, the teams tied the score up three more times in the last six minutes of the half. Worcester State went into the intermission on top 26-25 after Mustapha drained a pair of buckets at the charity stripe.

Worcester State held a slim lead throughout the first two and a half minutes of the second half until Pasquantonio made a layup to put the Owls on top. Nevertheless, Worcester State came back with a 9-0 run on buckets from Bacon and a triple from Ryan DiBernardo (Springfield, Mass.) to increase their lead to 10.

With 9:56 remaining in the game, Westfield State started an 8-0 run following a three from Allister Williams (Boston, Mass.) to close the gap to just three. The Owls stayed within five points until the last minute of play when they had no choice but to foul. The Owls didn't get lucky as Worcester State converted 8-of-8 free throws to claim a 69-60 win.

Worcester State shot 41.1% from the field throughout the game, while the Owls stood at 38.3%. Worcester State also outshot the Owls from 3-point range, shooting 35.3%, and also from the free throw line, converting 17-of-23 (79.9%).

Next up, the Lancers host MCLA in a Saturday afternoon game, while the Owls travel to Fitchburg State on the same day.