MIT Halts Rams Winning Streak
CAMBRIDGE, Mass. -- Senior co-captain Billy Johnson scored
a season-high 20
points, including five three-pointers, while Noel Hollingsworth
added a
double-double of 15 points and 13 boards to help MIT down Suffolk,
85-50, in
non-conference men?s basketball action on Saturday afternoon at
Rockwell
Cage. Johnson and his teammates combined to shoot 14-30 from beyond
the
arc and held a 55-30 edge in rebounding, as MIT improved to 5-0.
The Engineers were
playing in their first home-game since their memorable run into the
NCAA
Division III Tournament a year ago. The loss was the first of the
season for
Suffolk, which falls to 4-1.
The Cardinal and Grey jumped out to a quick, 15-3 lead over the
game?s first
five minutes, keyed by a pair of Johnson trifectas and seven forced
turnovers.
MIT was able to convert those miscues into 11 points during that
sequence.
Suffolk would try to cut into the lead over the next nine and a
half minutes,
getting as close as four after a pair of free throws by Sam
Hutchins with 6:07
left. However, the Engineers quickly responded with a
game-changing, 21-0 run
over a 5:08 stretch, including five consecutive three-balls at one
point, as
their advantage swelled to 41-16. Johnson and Mitchell Kates were
the main
catalysts of the run, combining to score or assist on five of the
six field
goals, to help send MIT into the break up 42-17.
The two teams traded baskets early in the second stanza. Jimmy
Burke drained a
pair of his four triples in the first 3:27 while Matt Pepdjonovic
converted a
traditional three-point play to get the margin down to 31 with
15:36
remaining. That would be as close as the Rams would get, however,
as Johnson
responded with five straight points to send the Cardinal and Grey
on its way to the win.
Burke was one of three MIT players to finish in double-figures with
12. Will
Tashman had a career-high 13 rebounds to go along with four points.
Kates
scored nine and added seven assists and four caroms. Luke Barrett
paced the
Rams with 14 points while Pepdjonovic and Mike Gibbons each tallied
13.
MIT held Suffolk to 31% shooting to win for the fifth-straight
time
against its local rivals. The two teams have squared off in each
season since 1971, with
Tech holding 25-16 edge in the series.
Tech will travel across the river to Emerson College on
Tuesday,
December 1 for a 5:30 p.m. start. Suffolk hosts UMass-Boston on
Thursday at 7:30 p.m
(Story courtesy of MIT Sports Information)