Lions Roar Past Rams 72-51 in Home Opener

By Framingham State athletics

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FRAMINGHAM – The Framingham State University men’s basketball team was defeated 72-51 by Eastern Nazarene College in their home opening this evening in non-conference action at Logan Gymnasium at Framingham State. 

With the loss, Framingham State falls to 1-1.

With the win, Eastern Nazarene remains undefeated at 2-0.

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HOW IT HAPPENED: 

·         With the Rams leading 6-5 just under three minutes into the game, the Lions rattled off a 9-1 run over the next five minutes to take a 14-6 lead. 

·         Eastern Nazarene led 21-13 after a three from Corey McGhee with just under nine to play in the half, but the Rams received a bucket from JD Okafor and a three from Yassir Muhammad to close the gap to 21-18. 

·         A three pushed the Lions advantage back to six, the Rams answered with an Okafor three-point play and a layup from Bryan Thompson to pull within one, 24-23, with just under three to play. 

·         The Lions pushed the lead back to seven before the Rams closed the gap to 30-26 at the half. 

·         The Lions opened the second half with a 9-0 run and led 39-26 with 15:39 on the clock. They extended the lead to 15 with just under 11 minutes to play in the game. 

·         The Rams closed the gap to 44-34 on an Okafor free throw, but the Lions pushed the lead back to 56-36 with under seven to play. The Lions maintained the lead throughout the second half to earn the victory. 

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INSIDE THE NUMBERS: 

·         The Rams were paced by 18 points, five rebounds and two steals from Okafor, while Julius Gones finished the game with a double double of 13 point and team-best 15 boards. 

·         The Lions received a team-high 17 points from Bernie McGuinness to go along with five boards, four assists and a steal, while JaWaun Moore finished the game with 11 points and five boards. 

·         The Lions shot 52% from the floor for the game including 50% from behind the arc, while the Rams connected on 30% of their shots and struggled from behind the arc. 

UP NEXT: The Rams are back in action at home on Tuesday night when they host Elms at 6 p.m., while the Lions host Lasell on Tuesday at 7:30 p.m. 

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