Men's Basketball Topped By Owls In MASCAC Quarterfinal

Westfield, MA – The Fitchburg State Men's Basketball team dropped a 77-71 decision to the Owls of Westfield State this evening in quarterfinal round action of the 2023-24 Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference (MASCAC) action from the Woodward Center.

The Basics

Score: Fitchburg State 71, Westfield State 77

Fitchburg State (3-23, 1-11 MASCAC) I Westfield State (19-7, 9-3 MASCAC)

How It Happened

1st half

Westfield State opened the contest with a 7-2 lead on a dunk from senior Brendon Hamilton (Worcester, MA) before Fitchburg State answered as freshman Alex Moemeka (West Hartford, CT) registered a layup to cut the lead to 7-4. The Owls pushed the lead to 14-6 when sophomore Dom Strother (Edinburg, VA) collected a bucket, but the Falcons countered on a basket by junior Frederick Siayor (Worcester, MA) to make the score 14-8.

The hosts extended the advantage to 21-15 with freshman Xavier Lewis (Wheatley Heights, NY) hitting a jumper, but the Green and Gold battled back to take a 27-26 lead on a pair of free throws from newcomer Donald Brown Jr (Baltimore, MD). Westfield State regained the lead, going on a 9-0 run as junior Angel Prince-Espada (Cambridge, MA) drained a three-ball before Fitchburg State trimmed the deficit to 40-33 going into break on a Siayor layup.

2nd Half

Following the intermission, the two teams traded buckets to start the second half with Taylor and freshman Kamau Franks (Converse, TX) notching baskets for Fitchburg State, while Hamilton and senior Kauny Teng (Manchester, NH) registering the Westfield State buckets (48-40). Taylor and Siayor would connected on layups for the Falcons to reduce the lead to 50-47, but the Owls upped the margin to 53-47 when Teng drilled a three-pointer.

The Green and Gold went on a 6-0 stretch as Siayor netted a pair of buckets and a Brown Jr layup (61-55) before Hamilton registered a layup for the Owls to up the lead to 63-55. The Falcons cut the lead to 74-71 as Moemeka hit a layup, but the Owls secured the victory with Strother and sophomore Juju Omot (Springfield, MA) connecting on free-throws, resulting in the 77-71 final.

Inside the Numbers                                                                                                 

• Falcons were led by Siayor with a team-best 20 points, five caroms, two assists and two steals
• Brown Jr added 14 points, three rebounds, two assists and two steals for the Green and Gold
• For the Owls, Hamilton finished with a game-best 21 points, 18 boards, two assists, one steal and one block
• Strother chipped in with 16 points, 14 rebounds, two assists and two steals
• 125th meeting between Fitchburg State and Westfield State on the hardwood with the Falcons 29-95 all-time when taking on the Owls
• Fitchburg State shot 31-for-72 (43.1%) from the field and (4-of-19) 21.1% from three-point range
• Westfield State finished 28-of-72 (38.9%) overall and (8-for-26) 30.8% for beyond the arc
• Owls held a 57-36 advantage on the glass

Up Next

Falcons concluded their 2023-24 season this evening.

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