Men's Basketball Drops 81-71 Setback To Fitchburg State

Worcester, MA --- Fitchburg State sophomore Zach Valliere (Douglas, MA) narrowly missed a double-double as the Falcons snapped a 10-game skid to defeat Worcester State, 81-71, in a MASCAC men's basketball matchup on Tuesday night. 

Valliere drained a game-high 18 points as he was seven-for-12 from the field. He would finish the night grabbing nine rebounds and doling out a pair of assists for FSU (4-16, 1-8 MASCAC).

Junior Jeremy Kimber (Fitchburg, MA) added 12 points while senior Robert Hopkins (East Hartford, CT) pitched in with 11 of his own. Fourth-year Elliot Knower (Baldwinville, MA) pulled down six boards – five of which came on the defensive end. Junior Rolffi Canela (Peth Amboy, NJ) came through to aid the Falcons with six of their 14 assists.

For the Lancers (6-16, 4-5 MASCAC) sophomore Monte Goodwin (Boston, MA) and senior Dave Doulette (Bridgewater, MA) each posted totals of 12 points apiece. Rookie Emmanuel Ferraud (Worcester, MA/South) and third-year Clayton Timas (New Bedford, MA) each recorded 10 as Ferraud tallied six caroms and a trio of assists. Goodwin also came up with 13 rebounds for his third double-double of the season.

Following a pair of ties and nine lead changes, Worcester State was down 33-32 before they utilized a 10-2 run to end the opening stanza for the 42-35 advantage at the break. Neither team was ahead by more than two possessions as FSU's largest edge was five in the opening minutes of the contest while the Lancers led by four points twice around the 7:30 mark.

After Goodwin converted a lay-up to put WSU on top 46-39 with 18:17 remaining, the Falcons erupted and outscored the hosts 22-6 over the next 7½ minutes of play. Hopkins helped bookend the rally for the visitors with three of the squad's five treys-pointers during the skein.

Fitchburg State led by as many as 13 with 2:21 left (73-60) before the Lancers tried to send their opponents to the free throw line to stop the clock. The Falcons would notch a perfect eight-for-eight line from the charity stripe to help them snap a nine-game losing streak dating back to last season versus MASCAC opponents in the regular season.

Worcester State controlled the inside game with a 44-28 edge in the key and they also had a 12-3 lead in transition points. WSU also had a 44-40 advantage in the rebounding category and a 17-14 margin in offensive caroms.

Despite shooting a modest 36 percent from beyond the arc, the Falcons made their three pointers when they needed to count as they went six for 12 in the second half. Both teams shot around 40 percent for the game and the visitors were 14-for-21 from the free throw line in the final frame while the Blue and Gold only got to the line twice (0-for-2).

Both squads return to MASCAC action at home on Saturday as the Lancers will entertain Bridgewater State in a key conference matchup at 5:30 while the Falcons will play Salem State at 3 PM.