Men’s Basketball Falls To Becker, 81-68

Box Score

LEICESTER, Mass. – Elms College senior point guard Juan Maldonado (Holyoke, Mass.) scored a team-high 15 points, but Becker College’s Rajai Leggett (New Haven, Conn.) led four Hawks in double figures with a game-high 19 points and 11 rebounds to help Becker claim a 81-68 victory over the Blazers in Saturday afternoon’s New England Collegiate Conference (NECC) men’s basketball game in Leicester, Mass.

With the loss, Elms falls to 8-5 on the season, 2-1 in NECC play, while Becker evens its record at 7-7, 3-0 in conference action.

After playing a closely contested first half that saw Elms take a 31-29 lead into intermission on the strength of nine first-half points from senior forward Javon Mathis (East Hartford, Conn.), Becker used an 8-5 run to take a 37-36 lead at the 16:57 mark of the second stanza.

A 13-4 run by the Hawks gave Becker a 10-point advantage at 50-40 with 11:33 remaining, which was cut to a four-point lead thanks to a pair of jumpers by Maldonado and a dunk by Mathis to set the score at 50-46 with 9:55 to go.

Leading 57-52 at the 5:53 mark, Becker received layups by Terrance Favors (Boston, Mass.) and DJ Exum (New London, Conn.) and a three-pointer by Matt Petrides (Belchertown, Mass.) to give the Hawks an 11-point cushion 65-54 with 4:38 on the clock.

Maldonado completed a three-point play with a layup and a made free throw to cut the deficit to seven at 65-58. Elms pulled to within seven twice more but Becker was able to maintain at least a nine-point edge for the rest of the contest from the 2:32 mark en route to a 81-68 win.

Mathis finished with 12 points, while 12 of Maldonado’s 15 came in the second half. Junior forward Edgar Martinez (Springfield, Mass.) added 10 points and three blocked shots in the losing effort. Junior forward Juan Alverio (Toa Baja, Puerto Rico) snagged a team-high eight rebounds off the bench for the Blazers.

Sophomore guard Bryant Corcoran (Wolcott, Conn.) and sophomore guard Luis Santiago (San Juan, Puerto Rico) earned eight and nine points respectively for Elms.

Favors netted 14 points and handed out five assists, while Trey Jacobs (Lexington Park, Md.) and Exum poured in 13 and 11 respectively. Leggett secured a game-high 11 rebounds while Markus Wright (New Haven, Conn.) grabbed 10 off the bench in the winning effort.

Becker controlled the paint, outscoring the Blazers 36-16. The Hawks also cashed in on second chance opportunities, scoring 17 points, while Elms managed only six points.

The Blazers return to NECC action on Tuesday, Jan. 19 when they host Wheelock College. Game-time is scheduled for 7:00 p.m. at Picknelly Arena.