Box Score Worcester, Mass. – Luca McCormick (Bradenton, Fla.) came off the bench to score a game-high 20 points and Clark University kept up its stellar play of late, holding on for a 62-57 win over Emerson College in New England Women's And Men's Athletic Conference (NEWMAC) men's basketball action on Wednesday evening at the Kneller Athletic Center.
The Cougars have won four of their last five to improve to 5-9 overall and now stand at 2-1 in conference contests. For the Lions, meanwhile, they have now dropped three straight to slip to 5-9 and remain winless in league games (0-3).
Clark came out slow and Emerson took advantage, leading for the first eight minutes of the game. The Cougars answered with a 14-3 run that was capped by an inside hoop from David Mercier (Milford, Mass.) and a short jumper from McCormick that game the Scarlet and White a 20-13 edge.
The Lions were within four as Brian Hurley (South Boston, Mass.) came off the bench and asserted himself with six quick points. An Evan Lerner (Hopedale, Mass.) jumper ignited a half-ending 12-2 run that featured three-pointers from McCormick and John Pisacreta (North Andover, Mass.) and a layup from Tyler Huffman (West Hartford, Conn.), making the score 37-23 at the half.
As quickly as the Cougars built their first half lead, they saw it disappear in the opening moments of the second stanza as Emerson scored 15 of the half's first 20 points, including a conventional three-point play from Austin Pinckney (Miami, Fla.) and a traditional triple from him on the next possession.
Clark, meanwhile, went nearly six minutes without a basket and when they finally did score on a Mercier hoop, it was quickly answered by a Hurley inside score.
The Cougars pushed their bulge back to double digits at 50-40 following a Mercier triple and a Lerner reverse layup, but Michael Sheng (Altadena, Calif.) fueled a 13-3 Emerson spurt with a three-pointer and two layups – with the second layup evening the score at 53-53 with 3:31 to play.
On their next possession, the Scarlet and White fired back with a three-pointer from Joe Atkinson (Milford, Mass.) and then after a steal by Luke LaLima (Colts Neck, N.J.), McCormick finished inside on the break off of a LaLima feed pushing the Cougars ahead by five.
After a Tyson Hallowell (Lincoln, Mass.) free throw, McCormick scored with a swooping layup to give the Cougars a six point edge at 60-54 with less than two minutes to play.
Clark, missed the front end of a pair of one-and-one's and John Geary (Duxbury, Mass.) gave the Lions hope with a rightside triple but Pisacreta knocked down two from the charity stripe with 18 seconds left to put the game away.
Emerson shot 33 percent from the field for the game, including just 24 percent in the opening half. The Lions did hold a 42-33 edge on the glass, but the Cougars were able to force 17 turnovers and with McCormick leading the way, the Scarlet and White reserves outscored the Emerson bench, 31-23.
Pinckney led the way for Emerson with 16 points and nine boards, while both Hurley and Sheng came off the bench and finished with ten points each. Geoffrey Gray (Newton, Mass.), meanwhile, totaled four points, 11 rebounds and four assists.
McCormick added nine rebounds to his third career game with 20 points or more, while Atkinson (six rebounds), Pisacreta (three rebounds, three assists) and Mercier (five rebounds, two steals) all had nine points.
Both teams are back in action on Saturday with conference contests. The Lions welcome WPI for a 2:00 p.m. showdown, while the Scarlet and White hit the road for a 1:00 p.m. matchup with Coast Guard.
