Falcons Fall to Gordon College

Fitchburg, Mass. – The Fitchburg State University men's basketball team dropped a 91-82 decision to the visiting Scots of Gordon College in a non-conference match-up tonight at Parkinson gymnasium.

The Basics

Score: Fitchburg State 82, Gordon College 91
Records: Fitchburg State (5-4) | Gordon College (4-2)

How It Happened

The teams went basket-for-basket to open the contest. Gordon took the largest lead (16-10) with five straight points off a bucket from senior Eric Demers (Acushnet, Mass.) and a trey from freshman Justin Yu (North Brunswick, NJ) before the Falcons battled back to take a 24-22 lead as senior Charles Doss (Fitchburg, Mass.) connected for two.

Knotted 36-36, the Scots extended the lead by five on a Yu jumper from the key. A pair from the charity stripe for freshman Xavier Betancourt (Tampa, Fla.) cut the score to 41-40 but Gordon's first-year Zachary Bennett (Wolfeboro, NH) closed out the first half with a three-point shot from the corner to give the visitors a 44-40 advantage going into the break.

The Falcons started the second frame on a 6-2 run with baskets from senior Nicholas Tracy (Indianapolis, Ind.), sophomore Devon Johnson (Washington, DC) and Doss to even the game at 46-46. However, Gordon would counter with an 8-0 run to lead 57-48 with 15:20 to play.

The Falcons continued to battle back when Betancourt got the hot hand for 10 straight points for the hosts to cut the lead to 80-70. With just two minutes remaining Doss hit a clutch jumper to put the Falcons within three (83-80) but the Scots finished  with six points from the free-throw line, resulting in the 91-82 final.

Inside the Numbers

• Falcons were led by Betancourt with 21 points, 3 rebounds, 3 assists and two steals
• Sophomore Dominik Williams (Newark, NJ) netted 13 points off the bench for Fitchburg State
• Demers finished with a game-high 31 points and 5 boards for the Scots
• Freshman Garrett Sattazahn (Morris, Conn.) chipped in with 17 points, 4 rebounds and 4 assists for Gordon
• Fitchburg State shot 33-for-71 (46.5%) from the field and (9-for-20) 45% from three point range
• Gordon finished 32-of-67 (47.8%) overall and (13-for-29) 44.8% for beyond the arc

UP NEXT

The Falcons will host the Engineers of MIT on Saturday afternoon for a non-conference tilt starting at 3:00 PM. Gordon will next play at Curry College on the same day at 3:00 PM.