Rams Rally Past Owls, 77-66

WESTFIELD, Mass. – Xavier Lewis (Long Island, N.Y.) scored 16 points and added six rebounds and five assists but Westfield State was outscored by 17 points in the second half as Framingham State rallied for a 77-66 victory from the Woodward Center on Saturday afternoon.

Despite the loss, the Owls maintain a share of first place in the conference standings after MCLA defeated Worcester State 102-99 in double overtime this afternoon. Westfield is now 6-2 in the MASCAC and 14-5 overall while the Rams pick up a critical conference road win, advancing to 4-4 in the MASCAC and 11-8 on the season.

It was a tale of two halves for the Owls, which knocked down five triples and shot 44 percent from the floor in a 41-point first half, building a six-point lead before stalling out in the second half to the tune of 25 points on 28 percent shooting from the field.

Joe Thomson (Sunderland, Mass.) scored 15 points and grabbed eight rebounds while connecting for three triples in the opening 20 minutes. A.Z. Allah (Springfield, Mass.) followed with 13 points and three steals and Kenney Rogers (Springfield, Mass.) was the fourth Owls player in double figures with 12 points and six assists.

The Rams duo of Fallou Koite and Dyree Rogers combined for 45 of Framingham's 77 points with Koite delivering a game-high 24 points and Rogers adding 21 points on an efficient 8-13 shooting. Vondre Chase chipped in 14 points, five rebounds, and five assists.

Westfield trailed by one with 7:18 remaining in the first half before a 10-0 scoring run put the Owls in front. Lewis carried the team during the stretch, scoring all ten points beginning with a jumper at the 7:09 mark of the period. He made four free throws and then finished consecutive layups to push the lead into double digits at 32-22 with 5:45 to go in the half.

Later in the frame, Thomson nailed his third three-pointer of the half to drive the lead back up to ten points before the Rams went on an 8-0 run over the next three minutes with Fallou securing an offensive rebound and put back to make it 37-35 Owls.

Westfield was able to convert on their final two possessions of the period capped by a steal from Allah and finish in transition by Jason James (Ansonia, Conn.) for a 41-35 halftime advantage.

A sluggish start to the second half allowed Framingham to take the lead as Westfield scored just two points in the opening 7:25 of the second half with a long ball from Fallou followed by a layup from Joshua Saint Jean gave the Rams a 48-43 lead.

James provided relief with two makes at the stripe, then with 10:52 remaining, Allah drew a foul and scored through the contact then made the free throw to tie the game at 50.

Lewis put the Owls back on top with a finger role finish in the paint, then Keith Mency (Edgewater, N.J.) stole a pass and finished on the other end to send Westfield to a four-point lead with 9:13 to play.

The lead changed hands multiple times down the stretch with Rogers hitting a deep three late in the shot clock for the Owls to reclaim the lead at 59-57 with 6:15 left. Lorenzo Washington had an answer on the next possession, finishing on the baseline and drawing a foul where he would make the free throw to retake the lead.

For the Rams, Rogers made a layup out of a Framingham timeout and would not relinquish the lead from that point forward, finishing the game on a 17-6 run over the final four minutes to seal the win.

Prior to the start of the game, Westfield State athletic director Dick Lenfest, and the Owls' captains presented presented Owls head coach Rich Sutter a commemoartive game ball after recording his 400th career win earlier this season on January 10 as part of an 85-64 win over Worcester State. 

Coach Sutter has recorded more wins than any head coach in Owls' history, and with his 404^th career win on Wednesday, coach Sutter has accrued more wins than any men's basketball coach in the history of the Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference.

Westfield State will head back on the road for their next game as the Owls visit Worcester State on Wednesday night at 7:30 P.M. with the winner of that game holding sole possession of first place in the league standings. Framingham State will play three of their next four games at home, starting on Wednesday night as the Rams host Fitchburg State for a 7:30 P.M. tip-off.