Second Half Surge Lifts Becker over Men's Basketball

LEICESTER, Mass. – Becker College defeated to Elms College 72-60 in New England Collegiate Conference men's basketball action Thursdayevening. The win lifts the Hawks record to 10-9 (5-5 NECC), while the Blazers fall to 8-11 (7-4 NECC).

In the first half, the two teams battled through five lead changes, with Elms taking their largest advantage of the game at nine points. With 11:45remaining in the first half, Jessy Michaud (Fort Lauderdale, Fla.) gave the Hawks a 15-14 lead when he launched a three-pointer. The Blazers responded by going on a 10-0 run, capped off by a pair of free-throws by Conny Ihearahu (Largo, Md.).

David Maturah (Windsor Locks, Conn.) end the Blazers run on a crowd pleasing dunk with 7:56 remaining in the half. After the two teams exchanged three-pointers, Kyle Credle (Queens, N.Y.) got in on action with a jumper from beyond the arc, propelling the Hawks on 13-0 run, taking a 33-27 lead with just over two minutes remaining in the half. Elms finished the half with a 4-0 run, sending the teams to the locker rooms with the Becker in front 33-31.

Jessy Michaud opened the second half by scoring the first five points to give the Hawks a 38-31 advantage. Lay-ups by Tim Putnam (Windsor Locks, Conn.) and Kenny Lockett (Atlanta, Ga.) brought Elms within striking distance again at 38-35. That would be as close as the Blazers would get as Becker went on a 24-6 run to take their largest lead of the game, 62-41.

Donovin Ford-Hayes (Windsor Locks, Conn.) scored all 14 of his points during the Hawks game clinching run. Kyle Credle led the Hawks with a game-best 18 points. Jessy Michaud finished with 17 points, while matching Credle with game-high five assists. David Maturah rounded out the Hawks finishing in double figures with ten points.

Jerry Buchanon (Windsor, Conn.) paced the Blazers with 14 points, going three of four from beyond the arc. Tim Putnam finished with 12 points, while Conny Ihearahu added 11 points. Kenny Lockett pulled down a game-high nine boards, while netting six points.

Becker returns to action on Saturday, February, 7 when they travel to Lesley University for an NECC tilt at 4:00 p.m. Elms will try to end a three game losing streak on Monday, February 9 when they travel to Lesley at8:00 p.m.