MBB Falls at Wheelock

CHESTNUT HILL, Mass. - The Wheelock College men's basketball team knocked off Mitchell College, 80-66, on Saturday in a New England Collegiate Conference (NECC) contest on Pine Manor College's Brunelli Court.

Three players scored at least 17 points and Patsy DiNuzzo hit his 100th career three-pointer as the Wildcats improved to 8-10 overall and 4-4 in the league. The Mariners dropped to 1-17 overall and 0-9 in conference play.

Junior Max Kaim netted a season-high 20 points for the hosts, shooting 9-of-11 from the floor, while Eric Rice finished with 18 points and eight rebounds. Daniel Main notched 17 points, going 9-for-10 on free-throw tries, while DiNuzzo canned a trio of threes en route to scoring nine points and joining Main as the lone players in program history with 100 treys. Kyle Pierce added a career-high 11 rebounds to go along with seven points and three assists, while Victor Kashouh had nine boards, four helpers and three steals.

Junior Paul Jefferson knocked down four three-pointers while netting 16 points for Mitchell, and freshman Tim Quinn contributed 12 points, nine rebounds and three assists. Junior Julio Contreras chipped in with nine points and three helpers, and classmate Alex Vess hauled in seven boards.

Rice's bucket 34 seconds into the game gave Wheelock the lead for good, but the visitors didn't trail by more than six points until DiNuzzo nailed his first three at 8:56, providing a 19-12 cushion. Forty seconds later he countered a Mitchell triple, as his 100th three-pointer made it 22-15 at 8:16. Four straight points from Main later put the Wildcats ahead by 10 at 27-17 by 6:09, and the Mariners drew within five before Wheelock went back up by double digits. The hosts carried a 35-25 advantage into the locker room, thanks in large part to Rice's 14 points.

A Main three-point play early in the second stanza gave his team a 13-point advantage, but Mitchell went on a 12-4 run behind scoring from three players to draw within 42-37 at 14:52. Wheelock regrouped with a 9-1 outburst, as Pierce provided five points and an assist, and Kashouh picked off a pass and went in for a break-away dunk.

DiNuzzo's third three-pointer gave the Wildcats a 54-40 lead at 10:29. Jefferson knocked down a pair of long-range shots during an ensuing 10-2 Mitchell run, but Kaim's two freebies at 8:18 put Wheelock up by a 58-50 count, and it led by at least eight the rest of the way.

Mitchell will next host Elms College on Thursday, February 3 at 5:30 p.m. The game will be the first of a doubleheader in Mitchell's "Black Out" event, which will feature free t-shirts, a half-court shot contest and giveaways. The women's team will host Newbury College at 7:30 p.m., and between games will be a banner ceremony to honor Mitchell's championship baseball, men's tennis and women's soccer teams.