Lyons stage big rally before falling short of Tufts, 77-67

NORTON, MA- Despite overcoming a 14-point deficit to knot the score during the second half, the Wheaton College men's basketball team dropped a 77-67 decision to visiting Tufts University on Tuesday evening in Emerson Gymnasium. The Lyons fell to 6-11, while the Jumbos improved to 5-12 on the season.

Senior Jaxon Leo (Leesburg, VA/New Hampton School) led the hosts with 19 points and seven rebounds while shooting 7-of-10, including 3-of-3 from beyond the arc. Classmate Ben Stehle (Newton, MA/Newton South) had 13 points and six boards, while sophomore Brendan Degnan (Narragansett, RI/Bishop Hendricken) turned in 14 points and four assists, hitting 8-of-9 free-throw tries. Sophomore Anthony Weeks (Fitchburg, MA/Worcester Academy) added 14 points in 24 minutes off the bench.

For Tufts, senior Dave Beyel (Ocean City, NJ/Ocean City) totaled 21 points, eight rebounds and five assists while turning in an 8-of-9 performance at the charity stripe. Freshman Scott Anderson (Sudbury, MA/Middlesex School) finished with 16 points and seven boards, while senior Jon Pierce (Belmont, MA/Phillips Exeter Academy) had 15 points, seven caroms and three blocks. The Jumbos held a 42-26 advantage on the glass.

The Lyons completed a 12-0 run that bridged halftime when Leo dropped in consecutive hoops early in the second stanza, bringing the hosts within 28-26 at the 18:13 mark. After Tufts extended its lead out to 35-26 behind seven straight points, the Lyons continued to chisel away, with Leo and Stehle combining for their team's first 16 points of the period. Leo netted 10 in the first 4:42 alone. Wheaton eventually tied the game at 40 on a Weeks driving lay-up with 13:01 remaining, the first of seven consecutive Lyon points the sophomore scored.

Freshman Alex Goldfarb (New York, NY/Poly Prep Country Day School) countered by burying a three at 12:35 to give Tufts the lead for good. Wheaton cut its deficit back to one point three times by 9:48, when Degnan's two freebies made it 48-47, but the Jumbos extended their advantage to as many as 12 points before the teams combined to go 23-of-26 on free-throw tries in the final 5:36, with Tufts turning in a 15-of-17 display.

Wheaton trailed just 8-7 after Degnan's jumper at the 16-minute mark of the opening half, but the Lyons were held to two free throws during the nearly 10 minutes that ensued. Tufts followed with a 12-2 run to go up by a 20-9 count on an Anderson hoop at 7:53.

Weeks drained a three-pointer at 6:18 to break the Blue and White's field goal drought, but Beyel later netted five consecutive points to give the Jumbos a 28-14 lead with 4:03 left. After scoring 14 points in the opening 17:21, Wheaton finished the half with an 8-0 run during the final 2:39 while going 4-of-4 at the charity stripe to pull within 28-22 at halftime.

Wheaton finishes non-league play on Thursday at Worcester State College at 7:00 p.m.