Fitchburg State Soars At Framingham State, 71-65

Valliere notches double-double with a game best 22 points and 15 rebounds

FRAMINGHAM, Mass. (February 2, 2013) – Senior center Zach Valliere (Douglas, Mass.) racked up a double double with game-highs of 22 points and 15 rebounds to lead the Fitchburg State University men's basketball team to a 71-65 victory over the Framingham State University Rams in MASCAC action at Framingham's Athletic Center.

With the victory the Falcons improve to 11-8 on the year and 3-5 in the conference, while the Rams drop their eighth straight and fall to 8-14 overall and 1-8 in the MASCAC.

Vailliere led all scorers with 22 points on 8-of-20 shooting from the field to go along with 15 rebounds and four blocks.  Classmates Jeremy Kimber (Fitchburg, Mass.) and Tom Hennebery (Lexington, Mass.) also recorded double figures with 13 points apiece, while Brandon Selby (Baltimore, MD) chipped in nine.

The Rams were led by senior Tyrone Figueroa's (Revere, Mass.) team-high 15 points, eight rebounds and four steals, while junior Yemi Ajao (Randolph, Mass.) was the only other Rams to record double figures as he scored 10 and grabbed eight boards. 

The Falcons opened up a 10 point lead early in the first half courtesy of a 14-2 run capped by a three from senior Jesus Moore (Lawrence, Mass.) and did not relinquish the advantage for the remainder of the game.  The Rams cut the lead down to two (16-14) on a Justin Bryan (Red Oak, TX) free throw with 6:04 left in the first, but the Falcons responded with another run to close the half and push the lead back to 10 points.

In the second half, the Falcons extended the lead to 10 on a pair of occasion before the Rams pulled within three (63-60) with 2:29 left.  That was as close as the Rams would get as the Falcons outscored them 8-5 down the stretch to secure the victory.

The Falcons shot 39% for the game, while the Rams shot 38%.  The Rams held a 44-41 edge in rebounding and their bench outscored the Falcon reserves 19-7 in the game.

The Rams return to action on Tuesday night with a MASCAC game at Salem State beginning at 7:30 p.m., while the Falcons travel to Worcester State on Tuesday evening in a MASCAC matchup at 8 p.m.