NEWTON, Mass. – Suffolk University shot 50% from three-point range and handed Mount Ida an 81-75 defeat on Tuesday evening in Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) men's basketball action in front of a capacity crowd at Mount Ida Athletic Center.
Students came decked out in black shirts or creative costumes as the Mount Ida College Student Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC) sponsored "The Stable Awakens", a celebration of Star Wars and Mustang City.
The fans were in good spirits when Mount Ida led 38-32 at halftime, but the Rams took the lead with six minutes gone in the second half and never looked back, dropping the Mustangs to 11-11 on the year and 7-8 in the GNAC.
Mount Ida got 18 points and four assists from sophomore Jayson Clark (Austin, Texas) but all five of Suffolk's starters scored in double-figures, led by 24 points from junior Matt Duquette (Swampscott, Mass.), who also turned in a double-double with 13 rebounds.
Jake Meister (Madison, N.J.) and Michael Hagopian (Watertown, Mass.) combined to shoot 6-10 from downtown and scored 14 points apiece for the Rams, who led 10-4 before back to back triples by the Mustangs from Kevin Conner (Mansfield, Mass.) and Clark helped the home team cut into the lead. It took almost the entire first half for Mount Ida to claw back, but Conner, who had eight points and a team-high five rebounds, converted a three-point play and John Oliver (N. Babylon, N.Y.) hit a triple to give the Mustangs the lead at 27-26.
As has become standard fare for Mustang fans, Joey DeFillippi (Bristol, Conn.) hit a half-court shot at the buzzer to send the Mustangs to the break with a six point advantage.
Meister and Caleb Unni (Winchester, Mass.) each hit a pair of threes in the second half, where Suffolk engineered a 21-5 run to seize control of the contest with their first double-digit lead.
Though a jumper and a three-pointer by Oliver helped keep the Mustangs close, Duquette scored eight points in the final nine minutes and Hagopian hit six straight free-throws, thwarting a Mustang comeback attempt that included two three-pointers by DeFillippi, who ended the game with nine points and three assists.
Duguette added two assists, two blocks and a steal for the winners, while Unni scored ten points and dished out a game-high five assists. Playing in his 100th game for the Rams, senior Adam Chick (Northbrook, Ill.) poured in 17 points on 7-10 shooting.
Mount Ida got 14 points from junior guard Ethan Dujon (Warwick, R.I.) and six points and three rebounds off the bench from Brendan Cunningham (Quincy, Mass.), as the Mustang reserves outscored Suffolk's bench 24-2.
Mount Ida continues a three-game home-stand on Saturday when rivals Lasell College come to town for a 1:00 pm conference tilt.
The Rams (6-16, 4-11 GNAC), winners of two straight, will go for a third win when they host Rivier on Saturday at 3:15 pm.