Fitchburg State Bounces Back With Win Over Newbury, 70-60

Four Falcons notch double-figures en route to tenth victory of the season

FITCHBURG, Mass. (January 31, 2012) – The Fitchburg State men's basketball team got back in the win column this evening, posting a 70-60 non-conference victory over Newbury College at the Recreation Center.

The Falcons used a balanced attack all evening as four players recorded double-figures. Junior Zach Valliere (Douglas, Mass./Douglas) paved the way with a game-high 17 points and 11 boards, shooting 7-of-10 from the floor and 3-of-4 from the charity stripe. Classmate Brandon Selby (Baltimore, Md./Joppatowne) also added a double-double with 15 points and 11 boards, while junior Jeremy Kimber (Fitchburg, Mass./Fitchburg) and sophomore Mike Ingram-Rubin (Boston, Mass./Bedford) cashed in with 14 points on the night.

Newbury received a strong offensive output from freshman Dallas Serrano (Valley Stream, N.Y./Valley Stream) who led the Nighthawks with 15 points, four boars and five assists. Classmate Milciades Carrasco (Haverhill, Mass./Whittier Tech) was also solid with 16 points on the night, shooting 3-of-9 from beyond the arc, while freshman Daniel Watson (Chapel Hill, N.C./Chapel Hill) chipped in with 11 points and seven caroms.

In the first, Fitchburg State jumped out to an early five point advantage (12-7), using a 6-0 run with points from Selby, Ingram-Rubin and Valliere, but Newbury raced back, stringing together its own six point rally to regain a one point lead (13-12) at the 11:28 mark.

The first half remained a back-and-forth affair with Fitchburg State holding a 28-20 margin with 4:47 remaining in the period, but again, the Nighthawks bounced back, posting a 14-6 surge to close the half at a 34-34 deadlock. Ingram-Rubin exploded in the first half for the Falcons, shooting 4-of-6 from the field for 12 points in the frame, while Carrasco paced the Nighthawks with ten.

In the second half, Newbury came out firing, notching back-to-back three pointers to open the frame, but Fitchburg State quickly erased the Nighthawks momentum, using a 19-5 run to snag an eight point advantage (53-45) at the 9:32 mark. Selby and Kimber ignited the Falcons run with a combined 11 points, while Valliere fueled the surge with a pair of buckets in the paint.

Down the stretch, Newbury pulled within three (60-57) following a pair of treys from Carrasco and a lay-up from Serrano, but eight consecutive points by the Falcons, including a three from Donald Hunt (Winchendon, Mass./Murdock) sealed the victory for Fitchburg State.

For the contest, Fitchburg State dominated the boards, holding a 46-41 advantage on the glass, including a 17-11 margin on the offensive end. The Falcons shot 37.7% from the field, including 14-of-36 in the second half, while Newbury was limited to just 21-of-61 shooting and only two free-throw attempts in the second stanza.

Fitchburg State (10-9, 1-6 MASCAC) will be back in action on Saturday as it hosts Framingham State at 2 p.m. Newbury (7-11, 4-6 NECC) will host Daniel Webster College on Thursday at 7 p.m.