Men's basketball victorious against New England College

Adrien Gobin / THE GATEPOST

By Taylor Kimmell Asst. Sports Editor It came down to the wire when the Framingham State Rams took on the New England College Pilgrims in a nonconference matchup Dec. 9. Framingham defeated the Pilgrims 68-64, improving their overall record to 7-4. New England College fouled the Rams within the first 6 seconds, allowing junior Dyree Rogers to step to the line for two foul shots, both of which were successful. The Pilgrims scored on a 3-point jump shot on their next possession, pulling ahead by one point. Nine turnovers occurred before either team could break through the other’s defenders. Senior Vondre Chase scored for FSU on a layup, resulting in another lead change. NEC continued to keep pace with the Rams, taking back the lead 6-4 with a 3-pointer. On Framingham’s next possession, junior Joshua Saint Jean earned two points on a layup, which New England College combatted with one of their own. Though the Pilgrims scored on a layup on their following possession, baskets scored by Rogers and junior Fallou Koite allowed the Rams to pull slightly ahead. Framingham’s lead did not last, as NEC’s next two possessions allowed them to score two 3-pointers, bringing the score to 16-11. Two minutes later, Rogers added to FSU’s score with a jump shot. On the same play, Framingham fouled NEC, allowing them to sink two free throws. Though graduate student AJ Thompson scored on a layup on Framingham’s next possession, the Pilgrims scored on a 3-point jump shot. Forty seconds later, Rogers made a jump shot and, on the same play, was fouled by an NEC defender. He then sank his one free throw shot. Two 3-pointers by the Pilgrims and one by Chase brought the score to 27-21. On FSU’s next possession, Saint Jean scored on a free throw. Koite was next to score for the Rams, earning three points on a jump shot. Following a 3-pointer and a jump shot by the Pilgrims, Rogers scored on a jump shot. Successful defensive maneuvers by Framingham on New England College’s next possession caused the opponents to miss an attempted basket, allowing FSU to run the ball down the court, where Koite was fouled and then made both of his free throws. On the same possession, Rogers scored on a layup, shrinking the deficit to a single point. With slightly less than 3 minutes before the end of the half, the Pilgrims committed another foul against the Rams, granting Rogers two free throw attempts. He sank both - the first to tie the game and the second to turn the match in favor of Framingham. The Rams’ next possession resulted in a layup from Koite, increasing the team’s lead to 35-32. After the Pilgrims missed a layup, FSU brought the ball down the court for Koite to dunk. Following a timeout by the Rams with 55 seconds left on the clock, NEC turned over the ball, resulting in a layup from Saint Jean. This ended the quarter 39-32 with FSU in the lead. The Pilgrims had a rocky start in the second half, missing two shots out of the gate. Rogers scored for Framingham on a layup just over a minute in, shortly followed by one from NEC. Saint Jean battled back with another layup for the Rams, then scored a point on a free throw, increasing the lead to 10 points. Rogers added two more points to FSU’s side of the scoreboard with a layup a minute later. Defensive plays by FSU kept the Pilgrims at bay, allowing Koite and Rogers to tally more points on a dunk and a layup, respectively. New England College found their footing in the following minute, scoring five points on a layup and a 3-point jump shot. Fouled by FSU, the Pilgrims scored on one of their two free throws on their next possession. Saint Jean then scored on a layup, which NEC followed with one of their own. After missing his first shot on the Rams’ next possession, Thompson scored two points on a layup. On the next play, Thompson scored on a free throw. The Pilgrims countered with a layup, but fouled Saint Jean in the process, allowing FSU to gain another point. Framingham then fouled NEC on their next possession, and the team scored on two foul shots. New England College reduced the deficit once again on their next two plays, scoring on two 3-point jump shots. Koite, fouled by NEC on the Rams’ next possession, scored on a free throw. Shortly after, Chase added three more points to the board when he scored on a jump shot. Two more layups by the Pilgrims brought them within four points of the lead, but FSU continued to score. Fouled twice more in the following 30 seconds, Saint Jean and Chase each scored on foul shots. Great defense by both teams kept the next four possessions scoreless, until, with 4:15 left in the game, Saint Jean made the tip-in, preventing freshman Wellbi Perez Valera’s layup from missing the net. Following another successful foul shot by Koite, the Pilgrims rebounded the ball and brought it back to drill a 3-pointer - their first successful basket in 4 minutes. With less than two minutes to go, NEC was fouled by an FSU defender and scored on two foul shots. A minute and 20 seconds later, Koite netted another free throw. The Pilgrims, with 31 seconds left on the clock, scored a 3-pointer, fouling Saint Jean in the process and allowing him a free throw. As the clock hit zero, New England College fouled junior Lorenzo Washington, who ended the game by sinking a foul shot to bring the score to 68-64 - a victory for Framingham. Though the Pilgrims outperformed the Rams in terms of 3-pointers, FSU was able to secure the win through their defensive play and their success with free throws. Rogers led the Rams in points scored, tallying 27 over the course of the match. Closely following were Koite with 17 points and Saint Jean with 15. The Rams will open conference play by hosting the Westfield State University Owls Jan. 7.