Westfield reserve guard Chrys Malone forces Phillip Starks into committing one of Western Connecticut’s 29 turnovers. (Photo by Mickey Curtis)
WESTFIELD – Senior guard Lee Vazquez posted game highs of 34 points and eight steals, and senior center Matt Devine nearly notched a triple-double with 11 points, 10 rebounds and nine blocks to power Westfield State University to a 72-59 victory over Western Connecticut State University in non-conference men’s basketball on Thursday.
The Owls won their seventh straight game as they improved to 19-4 in closing in on the second 20-win season in program history.
Western Connecticut, which rallied from a 17-point second-half deficit to close within six points, drops to 5-17.
It was the Vazquez Show in the first half and he poured in 22 points and recorded seven steals in leading the Owls to a 38-23 lead at halftime. Vazquez erupted for 18 points in the game’s opening eight minutes as the Owls bolted to early 11-0 and 18-2 leads bolstered by a relentless full court defense.
Westfield State’s Jordan Santiago (Westfield High) is congratulated by Brian Foley and head coach Rich Sutter after making a sensational play to keep the ball from going out of bounds near the Owl bench. (Photo by Mickey Curtis)
The explosive 5-6 guard now has 1,455 career points to move into sixth place on the Owls’ all-time scoring charts, surpassing Chicopee native Alex Popp’s (Class of 1969) 1,433 points.
Devine was a one-man wrecking crew in the closing minutes when Western Connecticut cut the lead to six points as he blocked five shots in the final two minutes and made a traditional 3-point play to give Westfield a 66-57 lead with 2:36 remaining.
The lanky 6-7 center from Pembroke, Mass., who led the nation in blocked shots last season, tied his school records for blocked shots in a game (nine) and half (eight). In addition to nearly notching a triple-double, he led the Owls with a game-high five assists as he delivered the ball from the foul line to Vazquez for textbook backdoor layups.
Sophomore guard Phillip Starks of Hartford kept the Colonials close in the first half as he tallied 12 of his team-high 22 points on four 3-point baskets. Starks finished the game 6 for 10 from beyond the arc.
Despite only shooting 28 percent from the field and committing 29 turnovers, the Colonials scored nearly half their points on threes (9 for 27) to stay in striking distance.
Westfield took its biggest lead, 51-34, with 13:53 remaining then Western Connecticut gradually chipped away and pulled to within six points three times in the final six minutes. A 7-0 run made the score 59-53 at the 5:52 mark.
Devine’s big 3-point play began a 9-2 Owl run in the game’s final 2:36.
The Owls recorded 24 steals as scrappy sophomore guard Jordan Santiago finished with six steals and was the team’s third leading scorer with nine points.
Joseph Groski was Western Connecticut’s second leading scorer with eight points and also grabbed a game-high 11 rebounds. Westfield was outrebounded 55-36 but 27 of Western’s rebounds were on the offensive glass.
