Men’s basketball secures win over Westfield

By Taylor Kimmell Asst. Sports Editor Despite spending most of the game at a deficit, the Framingham State Rams battled back to come away with a 77-66 victory against the Westfield State Owls in MASCAC action Jan. 31. This win improved the team’s overall record to 11-8 and their conference record to 4-4. Following an uneventful opening minute and a half, Westfield put the first points on the board with a 3-pointer. Junior Fallou Koite broke through for the Rams on their next possession, scoring 3 points on a jump shot. He added to the score once more on a layup following a missed layup by the Owls. On the Rams’ next possession, junior Dyree Rogers scored on a layup, but WSU quickly battled back with a jump shot. Senior Vondre Chase and junior Lorenzo Washington maintained Framingham’s lead with a layup each. However, on their next two possessions, the Owls scored two 3-pointers, tying the game 11-11. Over the next 5 minutes, both teams alternated ownership of the lead, with two layups, two free throws, and a 3-point jump shot from the Owls and a jump shot and a layup from Rogers, a 3-pointer from Chase, and a layup from junior Joshua Saint Jean. The Owls regained the lead with a layup after FSU turned over the ball, bringing the score to 22-21. Koite battled back for the Rams with a layup to regain a 1-point lead on the following play. On that same play, Koite was fouled by WSU’s defense, but he was unable to capitalize on his awarded foul shot when it bounced off the rim. A jump shot by the Owls after getting the defensive rebound allowed the team to squeak by the Rams once again. Twenty seconds later, Koite was called for a technical foul, granting Westfield two foul shots, both of which they were able to sink. The Owls took advantage of their regained lead, scoring on a layup at the 6:30-minute mark and again 30 seconds later. On the Rams’ next possession, Rogers committed a foul, allowing Westfield two successful free throws. Washington and Saint Jean worked to decrease the score gap with a jump shot and a dunk, respectively, while the Owls added another 2 points to their score with a layup. The Owls regained possession, taking a successful shot from outside the arc for another 3 points. With less than 4 minutes left in the half, Rogers and junior Domonick Victor made successful drives, with Rogers scoring on a jump shot and a layup and Victor scoring on a layup to bring the score to 37-33, still in favor of the Owls. Koite made a layup in the following minute, bringing the Rams within 2 points of the lead, but Westfield fought to widen the gap once again with a jump shot and a layup right before the clock hit zero. Framingham returned to the court after halftime with a renewed sense of determination, showcased by a Rogers’ layup in the first 20 seconds. With the Rams missing two layups and a 3-pointer, the ball was turned over to the Owls, who brought it to the hoop for a layup. After the Owls fouled Koite, he took full advantage, sinking both of his awarded foul shots. The next minute saw an unsuccessful 3-point attempt by Chase and a missed layup by the Owls before Rogers broke through with a layup. Chase tied the game 43-43 2 minutes later with a layup. Good defensive play from Saint Jean during the following minute kept WSU at bay until Koite came through with a 3-point jump shot to break the stalemate and steal the lead for the Rams. A layup by Saint Jean 30 seconds later increased the Rams’ lead, but the Owls fought back vigorously with a layup and two foul shots. On the next play, Koite made a jump shot and brought the score to 50-45 in the Rams’ favor. For the next 2 minutes, WSU chipped away at FSU’s lead, adding points to the board with a jump shot, a layup, and a free throw to tie the match. On the following play, a successful layup resulted in a lead change, pushing the Owls ahead 52-50. Another layup by the Owls succeeded the first, but that was as sizable a lead as the team would take for the remainder of the match. Saint Jean blocked Westfield's next attempt to score, rebounding the ball and passing to Rogers, who was fouled and then scored on two foul shots. The Owls missed their next 3-point attempt, but the Rams were right there for the rebound, and Koite scored a 3-pointer of his own. WSU made their next layup, earning back the lead for a short time before fouling Rogers again and allowing him to make two more baskets from the free-throw line. Fifteen seconds later, the Owls scored on a 3-point jump shot for a short-term 2-point lead. Washington’s ensuing layup tied the match, and his successful free throw seconds later earned the Rams the lead once again. Shortly after, the Owls were given two free throw attempts, only one of which they were able to score on. Rogers scored on a layup a minute later, then both teams missed their next attempts on net. Again, the Owls were allowed two free throws, but only netted one. Chase made two layups in the next minute, one assisted by Koite, increasing the Rams’ lead to 66-61. Fouled on his second of the layups, Chase sank his one free throw. With 2:13 left, Saint Jean made a defensive rebound, passing the ball to Chase, who was fouled by Westfield’s defense. Chase scored on both of his foul shots. It came down to free throws as the final minutes of the match ticked down, with the Owls scoring twice more on foul shots, and Koite and graduate student AJ Thompson sinking shots for the Rams. Koite scored on a 3-point jump shot within the last minute of the game, quickly followed by one from the Owls. After a final successful foul shot by Thompson, scoring concluded, and the clock ran out as WSU missed their final 3-point attempt, ending the match with a score of 77-66 for Framingham. Washington said he hopes beating Westfield, the top-seeded team in the MASCAC, “shows teams across the MASCAC that we can compete with anyone in the league. “We have confidence in each other, we trust our preparation, and we believe that if we play the right way for 40 minutes, we can beat any team we line up against. This win wasn’t about proving something for one night - it was about showing who we are as a team,” he added. Washington said that in the face of Westfield’s great defense and cohesive style of play, the Rams came away with the win because they “stayed together through adversity and not letting one mistake turn into multiple mistakes. Westfield is known for punishing teams mentally and physically, and I think we did a great job of recognizing that and staying within ourselves instead of playing into their game.” After dropping a few matches early on in the season, Washington said Framingham intends to direct their focus toward correcting small but influential mistakes and prioritizing the matches in the immediate future rather than dwelling on games later down the line. He said, “Our mindset is simple: play hard, execute, and win the game in front of us. If we do that consistently, the standings will take care of themselves.” The Rams put up an impressive comeback against the Fitchburg State Falcons in a conference matchup Feb. 4, sealing their 83-74 victory in a successful overtime period and bringing their overall record to 12-8 and their conference record to 5-4. As FSU’s season winds down, Washington said the team is focused on taking things game by game. Washington said, “Our main goal is to go ‘1-0’ for the next six games. We can’t control the future, but we can control how we prepare and how we compete each night. Taking it one game at a time is the biggest focus.” He said the Rams want to “put ourselves in a position to earn a strong playoff seed and hopefully host playoff games at our home court in front of the best fans in the MASCAC.” FSU will host the Salem State Vikings for a conference matchup Feb. 7.