WPI 66, Coast Guard 57 

Box Score

Worcester, MA --- Jerome Kirkland (Boston, MA) tossed in 13 of his team-high 17 points in the first half to lead WPI to a 66-57 win over visiting Coast Guard in NEWMAC men's basketball action Saturday afternoon. Ben Etten (Hollis, NH) and Jeffrey Robinson (Granby, CT each added 10 for the Engineers who, in winning their eighth straight, improved to 16-3 and 7-0 in conference play.

WPI went on the attack early in the game, opening up a 17-6 lead in the first 6:55 due in large part to effective shooting from behind the arc. The hosts shot 46.2% from long distance in the first half (6-for-13), including three from Kirkland to help the Engineers establish a double digit lead. The Bears also had it working from long range. Nine straight points including two 3-pointers from Brett Huntley (Massena, NY) pushed Coast Guard to within 4 at 19-15, but WPI responded by closing the half on a 21-9 spurt to take a 40-24 lead into the locker room.

The Crimson and Gray played well on defense throughout the game, holding the Bears to 38% shooting from the field.  Point guard Adam Lirette (Dover, NH) aided the WPI effort with  seven points and a game-high nine assists.

Coast Guard (8-10, 1-6 NEWMAC) turned up the defensive intensity in the second half, holding WPI to only 30% shooting (9-for-30) as the Bears made their comeback bid. Coast Guard held the Engineers without a three-pointer after intermission, on their way to outscoring WPI 33-26 following the break. The Bears, however, were unable to get the WPI advantage under nine points until the final minute of the game. Back-to-back threes from Huntley brought Coast Guard to within six at 62-56 with 38 seconds to go before the Engineers sealed the win in the closing seconds. WPI never trailed in the game.

Huntley's 18 points for the Bears led all scorers, while Craig Johnson (Medford, OR) added 10 points and nine rebounds and Jevon James (St. Thomas, Virgin Islands) netted nine points and hauled in a game-high 12 boards.

WPI hits the road for four of its final regular season games starting on Tuesday with a 7pm trip to cross-town rival Clark.  The game will be televised locally on Charter TV3.  Coast Guard plays the middle contest of a three-game trip on Wednesday at 5:30pm at Wheaton.

Story written by Ray Cotrufo'98 - WPI Athletics Department