Men’s Basketball Wraps Up Season with 70-56 Win at Curry

MILTON, Mass.- The Eastern Nazarene College men's basketball team prevailed 70-56 at Curry Saturday afternoon in the final contest of the 2017-18 campaign.

The Lions finish the year with a 7-16 overall record and a 3-15 mark in the Commonwealth Coast Conference. The Colonels slide to 1-24 on the season and 1-17 in league play with the loss.

Josh Rice (Hanson, Mass.) poured in 19 points and grabbed eight rebounds to lead the team. Jacob Waldroop (Newland, N.C.) posted his second double-double of the season with 10 points and 10 boards. Noah Cheney (Bend, Ore.) finished with 10 points while David Lopez (Miami, Fla.) chipped in with 14 rebounds and seven points off the bench.

The home side built up an early 8-4 edge with 17:12 remaining in the opening period as Jared Thorpe-Johnson drained a trey.

The visitors snagged their first lead of the game with 12:02 left to play in the first half on a layup by free throw by Luke Dagley (Weymouth, Mass.), 12-10.

Curry pulled even at 15-15 on a bucket by Kieran Carroll with 10:15 to go in the first frame.

Eastern Nazarene gained a four-point advantage with 6:49 remaining in the half, 25-21, as Andrew Mitchell (Campobello, S.C.) banked in a layup and converted a free throw.

The Colonels reclaimed the lead on a layup by Akhari Goodridge with 4:50 on the clock, 27-26.

After the hosts widened the gap to 33-28, the Lions clawed back to trim the deficit to 36-34 before the halftime horn.

Curry extended its advantage to 45-38 with 14:51 remaining in regulation on a basket by John Coleman.

Eastern Nazarene battled back to seize a one-point edge with 10:34 left to play in the game as Waldroop completed a three-point play at the charity stripe, 49-48.

The Lions stretched the margin to double-digits for the first time on the afternoon as Rice splashed a three-pointer with 5:14 to go, 62-52.

The guests lead never wavered from double-figures for the remainder of the game as they secured their 10th win in a row over the Colonels.

Eastern Nazarene concluded the contest with a field-goal percentage of 38.7% while connecting on 6-of-24 from behind the arc. Curry shot 41.5% from the floor and 25% from three-point range on the day.