02/07/2009
Men's Basketball Rally Falls Short against Springfield, 68-64

Springfield, Mass. -- February 7, 2009 -- Clark University's come-from-behind effort fell just short, as the Cougars dropped a tough 68-64 decision to Springfield College in New England Women's and Men's Athletic Conference (NEWMAC) men's basketball action at SC's Blake Arena on Saturday.

Behind a career-high 26 points from Pat Crean, the Pride improved its record to 10-11 overall, and 2-6 in the NEWMAC. With the loss, Clark is also 10-11 overall, and 4-5 in league play.

Clark was led by senior guard Byron Roberts (New Haven, Conn.) with a season-high 17 points (14 in the second half). He was 6-of-12 from the field, including 5-of-10 from 3-point range. Junior Mark Alexander (Providence, R.I.) added 14 points and five rebounds. Freshman forward Bryan Vayda (Sturbridge, Mass.) added 12 points and a game-high nine rebounds.

Behind Crean was sophomore forward Matt Cavalieri (West Warwick, R.I.) with 15 points and five rebounds. Cavalieri was 6-of-6 from the field, and 3-of-3 from the free throw line. Junior guard Ryan Blackmon (Stamford, Conn.) added 12 points. Freshman forward Anthony Epps (Norwalk, Conn.) added six points, including two big free throws down the stretch, for the Pride.

It was a tale of two halves, as Springfield led by 23 points at the half, 43-20, only to see Clark come all the way back in the second half to take a two-point lead, 53-51, with 5:38 left.

Alexander made a short jumper with 6:23 remaining in the game, to erase a 24-point deficit and give the Cougars its first advantage (52-51) of the game. The Cougars outscored the Pride, 32-8, during that first 13:37 stretch of the second half.

After Clark made its remarkable comeback in the second half, the last several minutes turned into a dogfight. The score was tied at 53-all, 56-all, and 58-all, the latter with 3:04 left on a jumper by Alexander. Vayda then made one of two free throws with 2:30 left to give Clark a 1-point lead, 59-58. That was Clark's last lead.

A short jumper by Crean in the paint with 2:15 left gave SC the lead for good and Epps's two free throws with 1:27 remaining put SC up by three, 62-59. Another short jumper by Crean with 1:05 left gave SC a 5-point edge, 64-59.

Some extra drama was thrown in when the big men from both squads -- senior center John Strawson (Torrington, Conn.) from Springfield and senior center Peter Normandin (Westminster, Mass.) from Clark -- were both ejected with flagrant personals with 54 seconds left.

A Roberts' 3-pointer with 45 ticks left cut it to three once again, 64-61. Crean was immediately fouled and made one of two free throws with 43 seconds left. Cavalieri made two more free throws with 21 seconds left to up the Springfield edge to six points, 67-61. But a good 3-pointer from the left baseline gave Clark hope with 8 seconds left, 67-64. Coburn then made the second of his two free throws with 7 seconds left to make it a 68-64 final.

The first half was all Springfield. The Pride jumped out to a 19-4 lead following a lay-up by Crean with 11:42 to go. Clark cut it to 31-20 with 2:49 left. But SC then scored the last 10 points before the intermission, including a jumper by Epps at the buzzer. Crean scored 14 of his 26 in the first stanza.

Springfield shot .463 from the field (25-of-54) for the game. Clark, meanwhile, shot just .392 (20-of-51). From 3-point range, Clark was .333 (8-of-24). That included six three's in the second half. SC was also .333 (5-of-15) from behind the arc for the game. Springfield outrebounded the Cougars, 37-32.

Springfield will host WPI next Wednesday (Feb. 11) at 7:30 pm. Clark hosts Trinity on Monday (Feb. 9) at 7 pm.

Courtesy of Springfield College Sports Information