WPI 100, Salem State 97

Box Score 

Worcester, MA --- Ryan Bourque's (Nashua, NH) block in the final seconds helped WPI claim a 100-97 victory over Salem State in non-conference men's basketball action on Sunday afternoon.  With the win, WPI improves to 3-1 while Salem State slips to 2-1.

WPI overcame a 15 point deficit in the first half with a 27-8 run sparked by a trio of Ben Parker (Waterbury, VT) 3-pointers. The game entered halftime knotted at 53 after a final second steal and layup by SSC's Jeremi Taitt (Boston, MA).

The Crimson and Gray took command early in the second half, opening up a 15 point lead with 10 minutes to play. Salem State battled back with a 13-0 run to cut the Engineers lead to three with 5 minutes to play. The game remained tight, but clutch foul shooting from Antoine Coleman (Everett, MA) and Jim Marois (Worcester, MA) helped seal the game for the Engineers along with Bourque's key block with WPI up just a point in the waning moments.  An SSC desperation 3-point attempt fell short at the final buzzer.

WPI saw five players reach double figures in scoring. Parker led the Engineer attack with a team-high 15 points in just nine minutes of action. Jerome Kirkland (Boston, MA) and Coleman each tallied 13 points and Marois and NT Izuchi (Boston, MA) chipped in 12 and 11 points respectively while both shared team-high honors with eight rebounds.

Taitt paced the Vikings with 20 points on 8-10 shooting while Stevie Celestine (Somerville, MA) flirted with a triple-double, tallying 16 points, nine boards and eight assists.  Marquis Victor (Lawrence, MA) tossed in 15 points for the visitors while Dylan Holmes (Groton, MA) added 14 and Ramon Cruz (Harlem, NY) chipped in with 13. 

WPI returns to the court on Wednesday when they travel to Chicopee for a 7pm contest with Elms. Salem State's next games is also on the road, Thursday at 7:30pm at Plymouth State.

Story by WPI Sports Information student assistants Scott MacDonald and Ben Gilde