Men’s Basketball Upends Becker College, 67-53

LEICESTER, Mass. - Elms College senior guard Andre French (Torrington, Conn.) tied with Becker College's Donovin Ford-Hayes (Windsor Locks, Conn.) for a game-high 21 points, while Blazers' senior forward David McDaniel (Plainfield, N.J.) and sophomore forward Kenneth Lockett (Atlanta, Ga.) combined for 21 points to help lift Elms to a 67-53 victory over the Hawks in Thursday evening's New England Collegiate Conference (NECC) men's basketball game in Leicester, Mass.

With the win, Elms improves to 12-8 overall, 10-1 in NECC action with its sixth straight win and ninth victory in the last 10 games. Becker's record evens out 10-10 on the season, 6-5 in conference play.

In the first half, early three-point shooting by Becker helped spark the Hawks to an 18-8 lead as Ford-Hayes hit his first four shots and scored 10 points during the run. 

Elms countered with a full court press, turning Becker turnovers into quick baskets and pulling to within two on the strength of a 12-4 run, capped by a three-pointer from freshman guard Jerry Buchanon (Windsor, Conn.) with 9:59 left in the half.

In the final minutes of the period, French caught fire, making three consecutive treys to give the Blazers their first lead of the game with 3:17 remaining.

Elms finished the half on an 11-point run and notched a 38-32 lead at halftime.

Offensive rebounding proved critical for the Blazers as 10 offensive boards resulted in 13 second-chance points. French led all scorers with 13 at the break.

In the second half, Elms continued to apply the pressure, scoring 12 of the first 17 points to start the stanza and posted a 50-37 advantage following a put-back layup by senior forward Jamal Hulum (Norfolk, Va.).

The Blazers built their lead to as many as 17 on a jumper by Hulum at the 5:51 mark and later matching that with a dunk by Lockett with 1:29 to play.

Buchanon finished with nine points on 4 of 8 shooting off the bench for Elms, while Hulum added six points in the win. French was brilliant in pacing the Blazers' offense, pulling down eight rebounds to tie with Hulum for the game-high in the category, and adding seven steals.

The Hawks' Yahmad Rountree (Waterbury, Conn.) played strong inside with 13 points, seven rebounds and two blocks, while Tyler Roberson (Irvington, N.J.) added nine points in the loss.

Elms is back in NECC action on Saturday, Feb. 2 when it hosts Mitchell College at 4:00 p.m. at Picknelly Arena.