Lasers Drop Season Opener to No. 7 Babson

BABSON PARK, Mass. — The Lasell College men's basketball team fell to defending national champion No. 7 Babson 95-64 in their season opener on Wednesday evening.

The Lasers were led by junior Tim Blair (Newington, Conn.) who contributed a team-high 26 points, three assists and one block in the loss. Blair shot .500% from beyond the arc, going 6-12.

Junior Brandon Vila (Jersey City, N.J.) proved to be a force on the glass for the Lasers grabbing nine rebound. Of his nine rebounds, seven were on the defensive end. Vila scored a team second-best 18 points and one assist in 32 minutes of play.

Midway through the first half, the Lasers pulled within three, trailing 19-16. Lasell boasted a 31.4 field-goal percentage (11-35) in the first half.

Lasell kept things close with Babson, going into the break down 39-27.

Tim Hasbargen (Munich, Germany) led a balanced attack by the Beavers, contributing 18 points, two assists in the victory.  On defense, Babson received a solid performance from Nick Comenale (New York Mills, N.Y.) with seven rebounds, two steals to add to his 10 points, five assists on the evening.

With 16:54 remaining in the second half, Babson took a 50-34 lead. Lasell was able to pull to within six, their closest margin in the second half, when Blair knocked down a three-pointer to cut the deficit to 52-46 with 13:58 remaining.

Babson pulled away later, shooting 70% in the second half. The Beavers pushed their lead to a game-high 31 on a three-pointer by first-year Graham Dolan (Williamsville, N.Y.) with 0:34 remaining in the game.

Lasell returns to action on Saturday, November 18th as they host non-conference foe Nichols at 3:00p.m. in 2017-18 home opener. Babson will also be in action Saturday as the Beavers host Worcester State at 1:00p.m.