WORCESTER, Mass. (Nov. 16) -- Bryan Riley (West Boylston, Mass.) nailed a layup and canned a free throw in the final 30 seconds to help Nichols hold off Becker 76-73 in the consolation game of the Worcester County Classic hosted by WPI.  The Bison improve to 1-1 on the young season while the Hawks dip to 0-2.  

Riley connected on a spin-move layup with 29 seconds remaining to give Nichols a 75-73 advantage. Becker answered right back with a layup by Rajai Leggett with  19 seconds left, but the junior missed a free throw that would have completed a 3-point play.  Riley then missed a pair of free throws and Becker had a chance for the win but Matt Petrides' 3-point attempt glanced off the rim with three seconds remaining.  Riley netted one of two free throws with a second left and Becker's desperation 3-pointer at the buzzer was not close. 

Chris Paquin (Barre, Mass.) paced Nichols with 22 points, including five 3-pointers.  Ryan Wilcox (West Granby, Conn.) chipped in with 15 points while Riley added 14.  Kyle Mascilak (Sparta, N.J.) sparked the Bison off the bench with nine points and a team-best seven boards.

Leggett and Trey Jacobs each poured in 20 points for Becker.  Petrides dropped in 17 points for the Hawks while Terrance Favors registered a double-double with 11 points and a game-high 14 rebounds.  The Hawks used a opportunistic defense to parlay 18 Bison turnovers into 26 points.

In a widely entertaining first half that featured seven lead changes and eight ties, Nichols shot a blistering 59.3% from the floor en route to taking a 42-41 advantage into the locker room at the half.   Leggett connected on 16 first half points for the Hawks while Paquin drained four 3-pointers as part of his 14 points.

Nichols is back in action on Thursday for its home opener.  In a scheduling oddity, the Bison will host Worcester State at 7pm in a rematch of Sunday's Worcester County Classic contest.  Becker heads to the Wesleyan Tipoff Tournament where they will open up play on Friday at 8pm against Southern Maine.   

 
Story courtesy WPI Sports Information

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