Babson Park, Mass. - Sophomore guard Brian Ford (Bronx,
N.Y.) scored a game-high 27 points, 18 in the second
half, and sank a pair of key free throws down the stretch to
lead the visiting Trinity College Bantams to a 72-71 win over the
Babson College Beavers in men's basketball action this afternoon at
Staake Gymnasium. Trinity improves to 2-3, while Babson drops
to 4-1.
Babson took the early lead and controlled the game for the first
eight minutes until Ford scored a three-pointer for the Bantams to
tie the game at nine with just under twelve minutes to play in the
first half. The Beavers got the momentum back with five minutes
left in the half on a 7-0 run and were able to enter halftime up
36-29.
The Beavers kept the lead in the second half until Ford struck
again with another three-pointer to put the Bantams up with just
over 11 minutes left to play. In a thrilling game that
featured four ties, and seven lead changes, Trinity eventually
led by five, 68-63, with just under three minutes remaining. Babson
answered with four straight points to get to within one, but
Trinity sophomore guard Salah Abdo (Chelsea,
Mass.) hit a jumper to push the Bantams' lead back to
three with 21 ticks left. The Beavers once again got to within one
point on a lay-up by first-year Lambros Papalambros
(Quincy, Mass.), but Trinity sealed the win when Ford
scored his two free throws to make it 72-69 with four seconds
remaining. Babson missed a three before making a lay-up as the
buzzer sounded for the 72-71 final.
Trinity senior forward Aaron Westbrooks (Dublin,
Ireland) added twelve points, while senior forward
Pat Belniak (Sutton, Mass.) led the team with
nineteen points and eight rebounds. Senior captain Zach
Etten (Hollis, N.H.) also shined with eleven points, nine
rebounds, three assists, and four steals, as he became the 22nd
player in program history to reach 1000 career points for the
Beavers. Ford shot 10-for-12 from the floor, five of
which were three-pointers. (led the Bantams in rebounding with
eight and also adding a team-high four assists.
For the Beavers, Belniak shot 6-for-12 from the floor and
7-for-7 from the line while collecting six offensive rebounds.
Seven of Etten's team-high nine rebounds were on the defensive end
and he also led the Beavers with four steals and three assists.
First-year Marcus Edwards (East Hampton, N.Y.)
added eleven points and four rebounds in defeat for Babson.
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