Regis Men’s Hoop Falls in GNAC Opener

BOSTON – In a closely-contested matchup with 11 ties and 17 lead changes, Emmanuel College scored the final six points of the game to prevail over Regis College, 72-67, Wednesday night in a Great Northeast Athletic Conference men's basketball contest at Andy Yosinoff Court.

Russell Rau (Fitchburg, Mass.) shot 10-of-13 from the field as he led the Pride with 22 points, nine rebounds, and three steals. Jalil Wilkerson (New Haven, Conn.) finished with 11 points, five rebounds, and four assists, while Joshua Perez (Lynn, Mass.) and Cameron Wilkins (Taunton, Mass.) scored 10 points apiece and Justin Evelyn (Uniondale, N.Y.) added nine points, three rebounds, three assists, and two steals.

Regis opened the second half with an 11-4 scoring run, capped by a three-pointer from Tate Pike (Bellingham, Mass.), to open a six-point lead. Emmanuel struck back with its own 11-2 scoring run, punctuated by a three-pointer from Donte Pope, to pull ahead, 59-56, with seven-and-a-half minutes left in regulation.

A traditional three-point play from Rau created a 59-59 tie, but the Saints scored seven of the next nine points, including a three-point play from Ted Weber, to retake the lead at 66-61. The Pride closed to within one and then, with just over a minute left in the second half, Rau grabbed an offensive rebound and converted a putback to allow Regis to jump back on top, 67-66.

On the ensuing possession, Zach Crisafulli tipped in an offensive rebound to give the Saints a one-point advantage, and then the Emmanuel defense forced a missed shot on each of Regis' next two possessions. The Pride were forced to foul, and Pope clinched the game for the home team by going 4-for-4 from the free throw line in the final 14 seconds.

Emmanuel (3-0, 1-0 GNAC) was led by Pope with 23 points and nine rebounds, while Ryan Grijalva contributed 14 points and six rebounds off the bench. As a team, the Saints shot 47.4 percent (27-for-57) from the field and 80 percent (12-for-15) from the free throw line, plus they won the rebounding battle, 44-30.

The two teams traded baskets in the first four minutes of the game before the Pride scored six straight points over the next minute-and-a-half to take a 14-10 lead. After Perez hit a three-pointer to give Regis a 19-15 advantage, the Saints hit three shots from long distance to go back on top, 24-21, midway through the first half.

The game continued to seesaw back-and-forth in the first half, with a three-pointer from Rau and two free throws by Wilkins putting Regis ahead, 36-34. Grijalva scored four of the next six Emmanuel points to allow the home team to open a four-point advantage, but Evelyn hit a three-pointer as time expired in the half to close to Saint halftime lead to one at 40-39.

For the game, Regis shot 41.5 percent (27-for-65) from the field and 57.1 percent (8-for-14) from the free throw line. The Pride committed just eight turnovers while forcing Emmanuel into 18 turnovers, scoring 19 points off those miscues.

Regis (1-3, 0-1 GNAC) finally plays its first home game of the season this Saturday, Nov. 20, against Rhode Island College beginning at 1 p.m.