WORCESTER, Mass. – No. 2 Clark men's basketball (20-7) played in their sixth NEWMAC Championship game in program history when they welcomed No. 4 Babson (15-13) to the Kneller and were edged 73-64 by the Beavers on Saturday afternoon.

The scarlet and white will wait until Monday at 1:00 p.m. to see if they will earn an at-large bid into the NCAA Tournament. Babson collected their second straight NEWMAC Championship and the NEWMAC's automatic bid.

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How it Happened

• Clark jumped out to an early 5-4 lead as junior Kekoa McArdle made a layup and sophomore Reid Neumann hit a three-pointer off a pass from junior Bruce Saintilus.
• After a pair of free throws from Steph Baxter, McArdle scored Clark's next four points and a layup from Saintilus gave the Cougars an 11-6 edge with 12:57 to play in the first half.
• The Beavers then rattled off 11 straight points led by seven from Baxter before Saintilus ended the run with a pair of free throws and a layup from first-year Quentin Pridgen with 7:36 remaining made it a 19-15 contest.
• Babson then went on a 9-2 run with the Cougar basket going to Saintilus and a Taylor jumper with 2:25 to go until the half cut the deficit to 28-19.
• Saintilus and senior Mikey O'Brien combined for Clark's final five points of the half and a three-pointer from Baxter gave Babson a 33-24 lead heading into the break.
• The Beavers scored the first nine points of the second half as Nate Amado netted six and David Cross buried a three-pointer before Saintilus and Taylor combined for four straight as Babson led 42-28 with 16:27 remaining in the second half.
• Senior Jordan Richard hit a three-pointer from the left corner and an O'Brien jumper made it a 44-33 contest before five more Babson points gave the Beavers a 49-33 edge.
• Saintilus and Calabrese each hit three-pointers to get within 10, but Baxter and NeJohn Fortes rattled off four straight as the Beavers led 53-39 with 9:09 to play in the second half.
• Clark then went on a 9-2 run sparked by four points from McArdle, three from Saintilus, and a Taylor jumper brought the Cougars within seven at 55-48.
• Saintilus and Pridgen each dunked for Clark's next four points to stay within seven and a Taylor jumper with 3:11 remaining made it a 62-54 game in favor of the visitors.
• After three Babson points, Saintilus converted an and-one and a layup from O'Brien off a steal brought Clark as close as six at 65-59 with 0:55 to play.
• Taylor and Neumann scored Clark's final five points of the game, but free throws from Baxter, Tyler Lauder, and Amado down the stretch helped propel the Beavers to a 73-64 victory.

Inside the Box Score

• The Cougars grabbed 41 rebounds, dished out 14 assists, and recorded nine steals.
• Saintilus led the team with 20 points and added six rebounds.
• Taylor added 11 points, three steals, and three assists.
• McArdle nearly registered a double-double with 10 points and nine rebounds.