CAMBRIDGE, MA -- Lesley was outrebounded 36-23 in its 83-55 loss to Becker College Saturday night in New England Collegiate Conference men's basketball play at the Nicholas Athletics Center.
John Sanchez (Carson, CA/Saint John Bosco) led the Lynx with 16 points and four assists, but a 20-12 Becker advantage on the glass in the second half limited Lesley's possessions and dashed any idea of a late comeback.
Guard Terrance Favors, who entered the weekend as the league's second leading scorer, paced the Hawks early and often, striking for 20 of his game-high 25 points before halftime. The Boston native (Bedford High) hit on 4-9 three-pointers in the first in sending Becker to a sizable halftime lead.
After connecting on 10 or more three-point field goals in every contest of the team's three-game NECC winning streak, the trifecta worked against the Lynx facing the first-place Hawks. As a shooter does, the Lynx went down firing -- and converting in the early going.
Justin Rosa (East Brunswick, NJ/Marist High), Alex Perez (San Diego, CA/La Jolla Country Day) and Mike Kaufman (Boca Raton, FL/American Heritage) scored nine straight Lynx points by way of the longball, gunning the Lynx to a 13-9 lead with 11:52 left in the first. After connecting on three straight, Lesley would miss its other five three-point attempts of the half, clinging to its slight lead before Favors took control.
The 6-3 senior anchored his own 10-2 run over a span of 3:28, scoring 12 straight Becker points in giving the Hawks a 17-13 advantage at the 9:00 mark. Ahead by seven with under 7:00 in the first, treys from Favors on consecutive possessions proved to be daggers, stretching the Hawks lead to 28-15. Sophomore Tyler Roberson got hot late in the half, also hitting two triples in a row, his in the final 2:00, to send Becker into halftime leading 39-21.
Only a Matt Gibson (Quincy, MA/Lexington Christian) three-pointer got in the way of a 13-2 Hawks run out of halftime, with Becker going ahead 52-28, and the visitors' 20-12 advantage on the glass prevented a Lesley comeback.
Yamad Roundtree (Waterbury, CT/Woodland) led all players with 11 rebounds to go with his 16 points, and reigning NECC Rookie of the Week Jerome Cohen (Boston, MA/Everett) totaled 13 points, six boards and tied Sanchez for game-high honors with four assists.
After Sanchez, Kaufman followed with nine points, and Gibson totaled eight on 2-4 shooting from long-range. Having hit on 40 percent as a team during its three-game winning streak, Lesley cooled off in making only 35 percent (7-20) on Saturday.
Lesley returns to play against Wheelock on Tuesday, when Becker takes on Southern Vermont.
