UMass Boston Powers Past Fitchburg State, 89-77

Ingram Rubin just two points shy of 1,000 career point

BOSTON, Mass. (February 7, 2014) – Led by junior Carl Joseph's (Brockton, Mass.) game-high 24 points, the UMass Boston men's basketball team defeated Fitchburg State University, 89-77 Thursday evening in the Clark Athletic Center Gymnasium.

Joseph finished 8-for-13 from the field and 8-for-11 at the line to pace the Beacons (6-14) to their final non-conference win of the 2013-14 season.  He was also one of four Beacons to finish in double-figures with Omar Benabicha (Saugus, Mass.) finishing second on the team with 13 points.

Luc Ulysse (Brooklyn, N.Y.) and Kadeem Coulter (Boston, Mass.) combined for 22 points respectively, with Ulysse shooting 50% from the floor (3-for-6) and 3-for-5 from behind the arc. Joseph was also dominant on the glass finishing with nine rebounds, and had a game-high six steals and had two blocks to lead the Beacons defensive effort.

For the Falcons (2-17), Mo Molin (Brockton, Mass.) dropped in 18 points as he finished 6-of-11 from the field and 6-of-7 at the charity stripe.  Anthony Mucciloi (Nashua, N.H.) finished second on the team with 17 points and matched Molin on the glass as the duo each pulled down seven rebounds.

UMass Boston used a strong first half performance to take control of the momentum and the scoreboard as they shot 60.7% from the floor (17-for-28).  After a quick exchange to start Thursday's contest, the Beacons used a fired off an 8-0 run with both Benabicha and Ulysse knocking down 3-pointers, along with Gregory Young's (Boston, Mass.) lay-up to make it a six point (14-8) contest in favor of the Beacons.

The Falcons did answer back with three straight points, but another three by Benabicha and a jumper by Sam Freeman (Boston, Mass.), pushed UMB back to eight.  They would then maintain that lead for most of the first half.  Joseph made it a 10-point affair with 2:50 on the clock after putting in hard contested lay-up.  The junior would later close out the first 20 minutes of play with a monstrous dunk to lead UMass Boston into the locker room with a 45-33 lead.

After the break the Beacons lead remained in double-figures and would eventually top-off at 17, following a pair of free throws from Quadry Allen (White Castle, La.).  The Falcons did everything they could to cut into the deficit, but the closest they would come was eight points, on five separate occasions.

Joseph was once again the driving force in the second half, as the Falcons could not contain the forward.  He would close out the contest with 17 second half points on 6-of-8 shooting from the field, and a 5-of-7 showing at the line.

Fitchburg State's Mike Ingram-Rubin (Boston, Mass.) came within just two points (14) of reaching the 1,000 point plateau, but was pulled late in the contest with Fitchburg State scheduled to play a home conference game on Saturday.  The senior was 4-for-15 from the floor with one 3-pointer and was 5-for-6 at the line.  He also had a game-high five assists.

Fitchburg State will be back in action on Saturday as it hosts MCLA at 3 p.m.