MCLA Men's Basketball Team Defeats Fisher, 77-66
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NORTH ADAMS, Mass. — The Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts Trailblazers men's basketball team rebounded from a loss earlier in the week as they used a strong second half to defeat Fisher College 77-66 this afternoon. With the win, the Trailblazers improve to 9-10 overall while Fisher drops to 6-16 overall.
The opening half saw six lead changes and four ties before Fisher settled with a 27-23 halftime lead. MCLA opened the second half quickly though scoring the first seven points to take a 30-27 lead. The hosts continued to the run, jumping out to a 37-31 lead only to see Fisher battle right back.
Each time MCLA stretched out, the Falcons rushed right back. MCLA twice led by six points before Fisher tied the score on both occasions, the last of which was at 52 apiece. At that point, MCLA used a 12-2 run started by a Ruben DelRosario 3-pointer as the Trailblazers grabbed a commanding 64-54 lead with just six minutes remaining.
Fisher answered with six straight of their own to cut the margin to four, only to see MCLA respond with five straight on the heels of another 3-pointer, this one from Paul Maurice, to essentially put the game out of reach.
The MCLA offense relied heavily on the 3-pointer, nailing nine on the night (9-17), shooting 53 percent from beyond the arc. The Trailblazers were led by DelRosario's team-high 15 points. John Johns collected a double-double, scoring 14 points and grabbing a game-high 15 boards. He also added five assists. Ramon Viches was outstanding in the second half collecting all but two of his 13 points in the closing period.
MCLA will return to Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference action looking to stay atop the standings when they travel to Salem State on Tuesday night at 7:30 p.m.
