Regis Men’s Hoop Earns Road Victory, 72-68

NEWTON, Mass. – Regis College rallied from a halftime deficit and made plays at both ends of the floor in the final two minutes to defeat Lasell University, 72-68, Wednesday night in a Great Northeast Athletic Conference game at the Lasell Athletic Center.

Marc Trinidad (Bronx, N.Y.) shot 10-for-15 from the field as he led the Pride with 22 points and 10 rebounds, his third double-double of the season. Justin Evelyn (Uniondale, N.Y.) scored 12 points, while Cameron Wilkins (Taunton, Mass.) finished with 11 points and six rebounds. Zakaria Latifi (Holliston, Mass.) scored nine points off the bench, Russell Rau (Fitchburg, Mass.) contributed eight points and eight rebounds, and Jalil Wilkerson (New Haven, Conn.) added seven rebounds, four assists, and seven steals.

Down 35-31 at the half, Regis scored 11 straight points in the first four minutes of the second half to open a seven-point advantage, but Lasell closed to within three thanks to three-pointers from Demerrick Warren and Kevin Vanderhorst. The Lasers scored nine unanswered points, all from Vanderhorst and Kevin Nunez, midway through the half to retake the lead at 56-52.

After Nunez hit two free throws to tie the game at 61-61, Trinidad hit consecutive shots and Wilkins added a layup off a Wilkerson steal to give the Pride a 67-61 lead with five minutes left in regulation. Lasell responded with seven straight points, punctuated by a three-pointer from EJ Day with 2:45 remaining in the second half, to put the home team back on top at 68-67.

One minute later, the Pride took the lead for good on a putback by Trinidad, and then Regis's defense took over, forcing turnovers on Lasell's next two possessions. After one made free throw for Regis, the Lasers were unable to tie the game, and Wilkins converted a putback with 13 seconds left on the clock. Lasell could not hit another shot before time expired.

Lasell (10-6, 7-3 GNAC) was led by Nunez with 28 points, while Warren hit four three-pointers for 12 points and Vanderhorst notched a double-double with 11 points and 10 rebounds. As a team, the Lasers shot 38.1 percent (24-for-63) from the field, including 11-for-27 from behind the three-point line, and 81.8 percent (9-for-11) from the free throw line.

The Pride shot 43.8 percent (28-for-64) from the field, including 54.5 percent (18-for-33) in the second half. Regis committed only 11 turnovers while it scored 17 points off 19 Lasell turnovers.

The game between Regis College (7-7, 4-4 GNAC) and University of Saint Joseph scheduled for Saturday, Jan. 29, has been postponed due to the likelihood of travel issues from the impending snowstorm. Schedule updates will be posted on GoRegisPride.com.