Lasers Upended by Nichols 113-103

DUDLEY, Mass. –  Despite a late rally, the Lasell men's basketball team fell to the Bison of Nichols College in non-conference action Saturday afternoon at the Nichols Athletic Center.  The Lasers fall to 1-2 on the yearl, while the Bison earn a 7-4 record in the past 11 meetings with Lasell, and advance to 1-1 overall.

Senior Armin Omanovic (Wilkesboro, N.C.) paced the Lasers with 36 points and also pulled down 10 boards. Classmate John Powell (Ashland, Mass.) notched 19 points, seven rebounds, five dimes, two steals and two blocks before fouling out late in the second half. Senior Yordan Villalon (Miami, Fla.) recorded a double-double with 16 points and 10 rebounds.

Junior Daequon Antoine (Fort Mill, S.C.) connected on 7-of-8 from downtown and scored 24 points to lead the Bison to victory. Sophomore captain Marcos Echevarria (Lynn, Mass.) led all student-athletes with 37 points – 23 of which came in the first half – to go along with six assists, four rebounds, and two steals in 40 minutes of action. Antoine, meanwhile, also collected five assists, two steals, and two rebounds. Senior Devin Stallings (Waterbury, Conn.) filled the stat sheet with 11 points, seven rebounds, three assists, and one block.

Both teams shot the ball well as the Lasers finished the contest at 54 percent from the field – including 63 percent in the second half (22-of-35) – while the Bison shot 49 percent overall and 54 percent from behind the arc (20-of-37). Echevarria canned six triples while freshman Tyler Dion (Barre, Mass.) knocked down three.

Nichols opened up a 41-21 lead at 8:57 of the first half following a three from Antoine. Lasell responded with a 24-5 run to close to within six points at 45-39 before triples from Dion and Echevarria helped Nichols take a nine-point lead into the break. The Lasers outrebounded Nichols 25-17 through the first 20 minutes, and Omanovic led Lasell with 16 points.

The Bison opened the second half on a 15-4 run and again opened up a 20-point lead four minutes in. Antoine sank two three while Echevarria and freshman DeAnte Bruton (New London, Conn.) each made one. The lead grew to as many as 24 before, leading by 20 with 6:20 to go, the Lasers staged one final comeback.

A three-point play by Villalon and seven points from Omanovic cut the Lasell deficit to 12 with 4:52 to go, and a pair of three's from junior Scott Arsenault (Walpole, Mass.) made it 101-94 with 2:32 on the clock. Seconds later, however, a technical foul on Lasell allowed the Bison to push the lead back to 10 following three free throws from Echevarria.

Arsenault connected on four shots from behind the arc and finished the afternoon with 14 points. Dion, meanwhile, went for 13 points (4-of-6 FG).

The Lasers will return to action following the Thanksgiving break on Tuesday, November 29 as they play host to Johnson and Wales in a 7:00 p.m. conference opener.  The Bison resume play on Tuesday, November 22 with a 7:00 p.m. home tipoff with Westfield State.

Recap Courtesy of Nichols Sports Information