Jesus Sanchez bulls his way into the paint. (WSU file photo)
WESTFIELD – After a three-pointer by Paul Maurice (Boston, Mass.) put MCLA ahead by two with 4:31 left, Westfield State rattled off the last 18 points of the first half to take a 46-30 lead into the break.
The Trailblazers never got the Owls lead below double figures the rest of the afternoon, as Westfield State cruised to an 87-66 victory over MCLA in its MASCAC home opener Saturday at the Woodward Center.
With the win, Westfield State improve to 6-8, 1-1 in the MASCAC, while MCLA drops to 4-9, 0-2 in the MASCAC.
During the 18-0 run, junior guard Jose Allen (Amherst, Mass.) drained three consecutive three-pointers, all of which were assisted by sophomore forward Evan Hopson (North Providence, R.I.), while junior center Shane Pasquantonio (Ashland, Mass.) sunk his first three-pointer of the season.
Westfield State made 8-of-12 shots from beyond the arc and assisted on 11 of its 15 made baskets in the first half. Junior guard Jesus Sanchez (Springfield, Mass.) also had a big first half for the Owls, sinking all three of his three-pointers and scoring 22 points.
Hopson, making just his third start of the season, brought great energy for the Owls on both ends, finishing with 8 points, 4 assists, a steal and a block.
MCLA scored the first six points of the second half to pull within 10, but when Trailblazers leading scorer Khalil Paul (Troy, N.Y.) went to the bench with his third foul, Westfield pushed its lead back to a comfortable margin. Paul scored nine of his 11 points in the first nine minutes of the second half, but didn’t score again.
Sanchez led all scorers with 25 points to go along with 4 assists and 4 steals, while Pasquantonio (24 points, 9 rebounds) came up one rebound short of a double-double. Allen finished with 18 points and 6 assists.
Maurice led MCLA with 14 points before fouling out late in the game. Adam Conquest (Gardner, Mass.) and Dakari Hannah-Wornum (Dorchester, Mass.) chipped in eights points apiece for the Trailblazers, while Hannah-Wordnum also added 4 blocks.
Westfield forced 24 MCLA turnovers, scoring 23 points off those turnovers. The Owls also pulled down 14 offensive rebounds, which led to 25 second-chance points.
MCLA shot 44 percent from the field, but made just 4-of-19 long-range shots. Westfield shot 47 percent for the game and made 8-of-14 three-pointers.
Westfield State heads to Framingham State on Wednesday, January 13 for an 8 p.m. MASCAC tilt. MCLA heads to Salem State on Wednesday, January 13 looking to pick up its first MASCAC win. – Courtesy of Westfield State Sports
