No. 25 Men's Basketball Holds Off Westfield State, 91-86
NO. 25 MEN'S BASKETBALL HOLDS OFF WESTFIELD STATE, 91-86
CHICOPEE, MA, Nov. 25, 2008 - Junior
guard Juan Galdon (Holyoke, MA) netted a team-high
22 points, including two clutch baskets in the game's final 35
seconds to help No. 25 Elms College hold off a furious rally and
earn an 91-86 win over Westfield State in Tuesday night's
non-conference men's basketball game at the Maguire Center.
Elms College, ranked 25th in the D3hoops.com Top 25 Poll, remained unbeaten at 5-0. Westfield State fell to 4-1.
Westfield State junior guard Brandon Mauer (Pittsfield, MA) nailed a 3-pointer with 1:01 remaining to cut the Owls' deficit to 86-84.
Galdon responded on the next possession with a fadeaway jumper to extend the Blazers' lead to 88-84.
Sophomore guard Dan Gonzalez (East Windsor, CT) followed with a steal on Westfield State's ensuing inbound, and following a 30-second timeout, Galdon sealed the victory with a layup on senior guard Joe Esile's (Milford, CT) inbound pass.
The Blazers overcame an outstanding effort by Westfield State senior guard Dave Jaehnig (Quincy, MA), who tied a career-best with a game-high 32 points and hauled in a game-high 10 rebounds. Jaehnig shot 9 of 16 from the field and was 12 of 17 from the free throw line.
Six players scored in double figures to lead a balanced offensive attack for Elms College. Gonzalez finished with 14 points, including three 3-pointers, Esile and junior forward Javon Mathis (West Hartford, CT) dropped in 11 points apiece, and senior forward Ronald Thomas (Chicago, IL) and senior guard Aswad Thomas (Hartford, CT) added 10 points apiece.
Mauer finished with 17 points and junior forward Drew Pereira (Seekonk, MA) added 10 points to both finish in double figures for the Owls in the loss.
In the first half, the Blazers shot 46.2-percent from 3-point range (6 of 13), forced the Owls into 17 turnovers and held a 20-8 advantage in points off turnovers, but Westfield State shot 60.0-percent (15 for 25) from the field and trailed just 50-45 at intermission.
For the game, Elms College forced Westfield State into 28 turnovers and held big advantages in both bench scoring (46-22) and points off turnovers (35-12).
Elms College returns to non-conference action when it hosts WNEC on Tuesday, December 2. Game time is 7:00 p.m. at the Maguire Center.