Worcester, Mass. – Emerson College's Michael Thorpe (Newton, Mass.) scored all of his team-high 15 points in the second half and the visiting Lions held off Clark University, 62-57 in New England Women's And Men's Athletic Conference (NEWMAC) men's basketball action on Wednesday evening.

With the win, Emerson improves to 9-5 overall and 2-1 in league play in their inaugural season in the conference. The Cougars meanwhile, have dropped a season-high three straight games to slip to 9-5 and more importantly 0-3 in league contests.

 Amazingly, the Lions won the contest despite going 1-for-20 from behind the arc and getting outrebounded 47-37.

Clark held a 14-10 lead after a 9-0 spurt keyed by a Nicholas DaPrato (Marshfield, Mass.) three-point play, and after a Conor Dow (Needham, Mass.) jump hook, the Cougars were ahead 21-20.

Emerson then embarked on a 9-0 run of their own that spanned the end of the first half and the opening minutes of the second stanza that pushed their lead to its peak at 29-21.

The Scarlet and White answered with an 11-2 burst that knotted the game at 31-31 following an Andrew Musler (Belmont, Mass.) inside hoop.

The game would be tied five more times including at 45-45 on a Musler three-point play and when a DaPrato scoop shot fell through moments later, the Cougars had their first lead at 47-46 in more than 16 minutes of game action.

Emerson retook the lead on a Brian Hurley (South Boston, Mass.) inside finish and three points from Thorpe, making the score 51-47 with 4:30 left.

A little less than a minute later, DaPrato brought the Cougars within two at 54-52, but a missed three pointer after a Jake Gubitose (Fiskdale, Mass.) steal was followed by a Jon Goldberg (Stowe, Vt.) fast break finish.

Down 58-52 at the 2:02 mark, Clark made on last push, getting a DaPrato hoop and two free throws from Tyler Huffman (East Hartford, Conn.), but the Lions closed it out with four clutch free throws of their own in the final 13 seconds courtesy of Mike Carbone (Scituate, Mass.) and Goldberg.

Emerson was strong inside getting 32 of their 62 points in the paint and they took advantage at the foul line, going 21-for-31, compared to just an 11-for-14 performance from Clark.

Both teams passed well, with the teams combining to hand out 28 assists on 40 total made baskets.

In addition to Thorpe, Goldberg finished with 15 points and nine rebounds and Sean Duffy (Berwyn, Pa.) chipped in with 11 points, four rebound and three steals. Hurley was also effective, totaling nine points, seven rebounds and four blocks.

Clark was paced by DaPrato, who ended with 20 points and Musler who recorded his fourth double-double of the season with 12 points and a career-best 15 rebounds. Joseph Atkinson (Milford, Mass.) played well off the bench, ending with six points, seven rebounds and two assists.

Both squads are back in action on Saturday. The Lions will entertain WPI at 1:00 p.m., while the Cougars head to Coast Guard for a 1:00 p.m. tip as well.