BOSTON, Mass. – Lesley University sophomore Charlie Reznikoff (Wilton, Conn.) came off the bench to register a career-high 21 points to lead the Lynx to their fifth consecutive victory with an 83-78 win at Emerson College this evening. Reznikoff was one of three Lesley players with 20-plus points as classmate Xeo Golding (Windermere, Fla.) and senior Devon Mayo (Newport News, Va.) finished with 20 and 21, respectively, to shoulder the load on the offensive end.
Five wins is the longest win streak for the Lynx since the 2007-08 season and one shy of tying the program record set in the same season. Lesley, off to their best start in program history at 6-1, will return to the floor and bid for their sixth straight victory on Thursday when they visit Mount Ida College (3-4) in another non-conference affair on Thursday night at 7:00p.
Reznikoff, Golding, and Mayo each drained four triples on the evening while Mayo added a team-high seven boards and four assists to his line. Junior Will Gibson (Melbourne, Fla.) scored four points and dished out a team-high four assists in 32 minutes of reserve duty for the visitors while sophomore Joey Martin (Melbourne, Fla.) added nine points, four boards, three assists, and one steal.
The Lesley bench, led by Reznikoff, outscored the Emerson reserves by a 31-10 margin.
Two threes from junior John Geary (Duxbury, Mass.) within a minute span put Emerson up 6-5 as the Lions held the lead through the first nine minutes of the opening half. Lesley diminished Emerson's seven point lead with a 6-0 run to pull ahead 15-14 at the 11:43 mark and added another six after a three point bucket by Rezinkoff to claim a six point edge of their own, 20-14.
The Lynx maintained a steady 29-25 lead before the Lions answered with the next five points that included two trips to the charity stripe. Sheng and Geary went a perfect 4-for-4 to put Emerson back on top at 31-29.
A trey from Gibson squared the score at 38-38l with 48-ticks left on the clock that was followed up a jumper from junior Corey Fitz (Los Altos, Calif.) to give Emerson a 40-38 lead at the conclusion of the first half.
The opening three minutes of the second half saw three lead changes between before Mayo drilled a trey to push the Lynx ahead by five, 61-59.
Lesley gained its biggest lead of seven at 74-67 on a 10-3 run – powered by five points apiece from Reznikoff and Golding - at the 4:26 mark before Emerson came within two at 74-72 after a three point bucket from Fitz and a three from sophomore Mac Sashin (Martha's Vineyard, Mass.).
A 7-3 run with two minutes remaining in the second half once again put Lesley ahead by seven at 81-74 before Emerson battled back with the next four points for a pair of free throws brought Emerson within three at 81-78 with 53 seconds left. Mayo would seal the game for the Lynx as he drove to the lane and connected for a layup to make it a two-possession game with just 14-seconds left.
Mayo's 21 points were a season high for the senior while Golding finished in double-figures for the seventh time this season.