Men’s Basketball Picks Up First Win of Season, Defeats Wheelock 63-48

BOSTON – The Suffolk men's basketball team used a 9-0 run to gain an advantage at the end of the first half and never looked back as the Rams went on to defeat Wheelock 63-48 Tuesday night at Winsor Court. 

THE BASICS
SCORE: Suffolk 63, Wheelock 48
RECORDS: Suffolk (1-5) | Wheelock (2-3)

HOW IT HAPPENED
Wheelock took a 7-2 lead to open the game. With neither team finding its rhythm the Wildcats held the Rams at a distance for the majority of the first frame. 

Suffolk made its move with just over five minutes to play before intermission as Steven DiPrizio got things going with a traditional three-point play. With 2:52 on the clock, Wheelock would score its final point of the half and Suffolk would go on to rattle off nine consecutive points to take a 29-22 lead into the break. 

Out of the locker room, the Rams quickly built their edge to double figures on a layup from DiPrizio. The Wildcats made things interesting and pulled within five, 39-34, with 12:45 on the clock, but the Rams responded with back-to-back triples from Michael Hagopian followed by five straight points from Jonathan Eng to regain a 13-point lead, 47-34, with 10:50 to play. 

Suffolk kept Wheelock at a distance for the rest of the way and went ahead by as many as 19 thanks to a layup from Jim Djema with 1:05 remaining. The Wildcats put away the last two buckets of the contest for the final 63-48 margin in favor of the blue and gold. 

STATISTICALLY SPEAKING

• DiPrizio put together his second double-double performance of the season as the sophomore contributed 19 points and 17 rebounds. He shot 8-of-13 from the floor, was perfect at the line (3-3) and recorded one assist and one block in the victory. 
• Hagopain registered 13 points on a 50 percent connection rate (5-10) from the field and a 3-for-5 showing from long range. The sophomore grabbed five caroms, and added two handouts and one takeaway to his stat line. 
• Djema rounded out the Rams players in double figures, all of who were reign from the sophomore class. The guard pitched in 10 points to go along with four boards, two assists and two steals. 
• Eng  could not miss from the field, literally, with the freshman shooting a perfect 3-for-3, including a 2-for-2 showing from three-point range, to finish the night with eight points in a reserve effort.
• Despite a slugging opening, Suffolk finished the night shooting 46.2 percent (24-52) from the field, 33.3 percent (6-18) from beyond the arc and 69.2 percent (9-13) from the line. 
• For the first time this season Suffolk outrebounded its opponent with a 46-26 advantage on the glass. 
• The Rams also handed out one more assist than the Wildcats, 13-12, while both teams were even in steals (6) and blocks (2). 

NOTEABLES

• Suffolk took the lead in the all-time series with Wheelock and moved to 2-1 all-time against the Wildcats. 
• The 15-point victory matches Suffolk's biggest win of the Wildcats in the series history. 
• DiPrizio pulled down a career-high 17 rebounds, marking the most boards by a Ram since Matt Pepdjonovic '13 grabbed 19 in a 78-65 win at Mount Ida February 12, 2013. 
• Thomas Duffy was a huge factor in Suffolk's strength in rebounding as the freshman pulled down a career-high 10 boards, including seven on the defensive end. 

POST-GAME PIC

WHAT'S NEXT?
Suffolk takes the momentum of its first win of the season into its GNAC opener Saturday, Dec. 3 when the Rams entertain Saint Joseph's (Maine) inside Regan Gymnasium in a 3:15 p.m. tip-off.