MBK: Starters lead the way for Lasell in GNAC win over Dean

Newton, Mass. – Four of the five Lasell University Lasers men's basketball started scored in double figures as they defeated the Dean College Bulldogs, 91-75, in a Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) clash Saturday at the Lasell Athletic Center.

Graduate student Jonathan Friberg (North Attleboro, Mass.) scored 22 points on 9-11 shooting and added 10 rebounds to give himself a double double. Senior Kevin Nunez (Dorchester, Mass.) scored 22 points and brought down eight rebounds. Senior EJ Day (Norwalk, Conn.) scored 21 points and added six assists to his stat line. A second Laser had a double double as graduate student Kevin Vanderhorst (Lawrence, Mass.) scored 17 points and added 12 rebounds.

Junior Mark Blair (Rosedale, N.Y.) was the leading scorer for the Bulldogs off the bench with 18 points. Senior Nick Sampeck (Blanco, Texas) scored 13 and junior Hunter Meyer (Taylor Mills, Ky.) scored 10.

The first 10 minutes of the first half saw little separate the two sides as it was a one-point game in favor of Lasell with 9:35 left in the half. Lasell gave themselves a little breathing room with a quick 10 point run to go up nine with 4:44 left to go. The Bulldogs got the game down to six on a three pointer by sophomore Shim Daniels (New Haven, Conn.) with 2.6 seconds left on the clock. Following a timeout, the ball found its way into the hands of senior Kelvin Kariuki (Taunton, Mass.) who shot it from the logo and banked it in before the buzzer, giving Lasell a nine-point cushion going into half.

The second half started much like the first, as both teams traded baskets, but Lasell edged out a little bit to push their lead into double figures at 13 with four minutes gone. Dean battled back to get it under 10, but Lasell found an answer anytime the Bulldogs got it under that threshold. The Bulldogs got the game down to seven with 6:19 to play but that was as close as they would get. Lasell went on a 26 to 7 run the rest of the way to win 91-75 over Dean.

Lasell was dominant inside holding a 46-34 edge in points in the paint and a 41-28 advantage in rebounds. The Lasers also had an 18 to 10 advantage in second chance points. Both teams shot the ball well with Dean shooting 44.6 percent from the field (29-65) and 40 percent from deep (6-15), while the Lasers shot a mighty 53.8 percent from the field (35-65) and shot 34.8 percent from deep (8-23).

The Lasers will be back in action following the new year as they play host to University of Maine at Farmington on Monday, January 3. Tip-off is scheduled for 7:00 p.m.