Men’s Basketball Endures 77-76 Loss at New England College

HENNIKER, N.H.- The Eastern Nazarene College men's basketball team dropped a narrow 77-76 decision at New England College Saturday afternoon.

THE BASICS:
Score: Eastern Nazarene 76, New England College 77
Records: Lions (10-13, 3-2 NECC) | Pilgrims (6-17, 2-3 NECC)

HOW IT HAPPENED:

• Eastern Nazarene picked up a 14-9 lead with 15:27 left to play in the first half as Nick Manso (Brick, N.J.) drained a trey.
• New England College used a quick 5-0 burst to snag a 20-16 edge with 12:23 remaining in the opening stanza.
• A layup in the final minute of the first frame gave the Lions a slim 40-39 advantage heading into the halftime break.
• The Pilgrims scored the first six points of the second half to capture a 45-40 lead with 17:57 remaining in regulation.
• Eastern Nazarene answered with a 6-0 run to reclaim a one-point margin, 46-45, with 15:22 to play.
• After the home side built up a seven-point lead with 4:29 on the clock, the visitors battled back to knot the contest at 71-71 with 2:36 to go.
• New England College chalked up back-to-back layups to seize a 75-71 lead with 1:11 remaining.
• The Lions responded with a three-pointer by Kobe Jones (Picayune, Miss.) to cut the deficit to 75-74 with 38 seconds left to play.
• Kyle Inglis banked in a layup with nine seconds on the clock as the Pilgrims extended their advantage to 77-74.
• A put-back layup by JaWaun Moore (Dayton, Ohio) with one second remaining pulled Eastern Nazarene to within one but New England College managed to escape with the 77-76 victory.
  

INSIDE THE BOX SCORE:

• Kobe Jones (Picayune, Miss.) poured in a career high 20 points and dished out five assists.
• Bernie McGuinness (Cumming, Ga.) finished with 18 points and nine boards.
• Nick Manso (Brick, N.J.) notched 17 points, three rebounds, three assists, and two steals.
• JaWaun Moore (Dayton, Ohio) netted 10 points and eight assists while Levi White (Springfield, Mass.) registered nine points and eight boards.
• Eastern Nazarene shot 42.6% from the floor and 42.4% from beyond the arc on the day.
• New England College finished with a field-goal percentage of 51.7% while draining 4-of-13 from three-point territory.
• Michael Hills paced the Pilgrims with 17 points off the bench while Kyle Dzarnowski scored 12 points off the bench and Kyle Inglis chipped in with 11 points.

LOOKING AHEAD:
Eastern Nazarene travels to Lesley February 14 for a non-conference matchup.