Men’s Basketball Pulls out GNAC Road Victory

Newton, MA – The Lasell College men's basketball team got exactly what they needed on Saturday afternoon, senior captain Javon Williams(Mattapan, MA) stepping up offensively to help the Lasers bounce back after a tough loss to Suffolk University. Williams tallied 27 points on 11-17 shooting from the field and 5-7 at the free throw stripe. On the defensive end of the floor, Lasell used a complete team effort to secure a 60-55 victory at Anna Maria College. The Lasers defense forced 24 turnovers on the afternoon, and held Anna Maria to 2-14 shooting from three point territory to offset being out rebounded by 18.

Lasell was led by Williams' 27 points, and also got a big boost from senior point guard Nate DiSessa(Westfield, MA), who scored 12 points, dished out 4 assists and made three key free throws down the stretch to ice the victory. Anthony Click(Springfield, MA) scored 20 points and hauled down a game high 10 rebounds to lead the way for Anna Maria, and Brad Peterson(North Kingstown,RI) was the only other AMC player to reach double figures chipping in with 13 points and 6 rebounds.

A back and forth opening ten minutes of play, including four lead changes left the Lasers trailing 19-17 with 10:24 to play in the first half. A Brandon Ganesh(Wellington, FL) free throw and a three point play by Williams ignited a 13-3 run over the next seven minutes, giving Lasell a 30-22 advantage with 3:17 left in the first half. The teams traded buckets over the final three minutes of the half, with Lasell taking a 34-26 lead into the locker room at the break.

The Lasers used a layup from Williams to extend their lead to 43-31, with 15:06 to play in the game, but Anna Maria would gamely fight back. A Javier Bristol(Haverhill, MA) made jumper cut the Lasell lead to two, with 4:28 to play only to see Lasell answer with a Sean Bertanza(Seymour, CT) layup off a feed from Javon Williams. Hugh Daye(Worcester, MA) scored to cut the Lasell to two again, but Nate DiSessa responded with a driving layup and the Lasers were able to salt the game away at the free throw line for the 60-55 victory.

The victory improves Lasell to 8-11 on the year and 7-5 in GNAC play, while Anna Maria falls to 7-11 overall and 5-6 in conference action. Lasell will travel to Rivier on Thursday February 2^nd, before returning home to battle cross-town rival Mt. Ida on Saturday February 4^th. Anna Maria will host the GNAC leading Albertus Magnus on February 2^nd, and then will get a visit from the Monks of St. Joseph's College(ME) on Saturday the 4^th.