The win moves Wheaton to the .500 mark in conference play at 6-6 and improved its overall record to 15-10. The Bears finish the regular season at 3-19 and 0-12 in the NEWMAC.
The teams proved to be evenly matched through the first half of the opening stanza, with the biggest gap separating the teams set at seven points with 15:56 remaining, as the Bears led 14-7. Wheaton however climbed back into the game and knotted things up at 16 points apiece thanks to a Mike Stanton (Lynnfield, MA/Brewster Academy) three-point play.
The hosts fell behind again, but sophomore James Greenslit (Framingham, MA/Rivers School) nailed a trey and the Lyons later hit a free throw to tie the score at 21 all. With the score tied at 23-23, Greenslit hit another three that ignited a 10-0 Wheaton run at the tail end of the half. Coast Guard's Charlie Nguyen (Springfield, MO/Parkview) hit two freebies to close out the half, as the Bears went into the locker room trailing 33-25.
The Lyons were able to maintain a solid lead through the second half, thanks in large part to Greenslit's hot hand, especially from beyond the arc. Freshman Ryan Ball (Ashburn, VA/Broad Run) kept the Bears in the game with a trio of threes spaced out through the stanza and sophomore Jason Nelson (Hueytown, AL/AL School/Fine Arts) added a pair of treys en route to his game-high 19 points.
The Bears however were unable to overcome the deficit, as Wheaton's Josean Vega (Pawtucket, RI/St. Raphael's) secured the win with a flailing three-point jump shot with the shot clock about to expire at 1:54. A free throw by Vega finished the scoring and gave Wheaton the eight-point victory.
Vega paced the Lyons with 17 points (7-13 FG) and Greenslit bested his career-high point total by one, netting 16 points on 6-of-8 shooting from the field including a perfect 4-of-4 performance from three-point land. Senior Richard Henninger (Duxbury, MA/Duxbury) was the final Lyon to score in double figures, totaling 10 points with five rebounds. Classmate Scott Mahan (Bridgewater, MA/Cardinal Spellman) just missed a double-double, recording nine points with a team-high 11 boards.
Nelson was the game's high scorer with 19 points to go along with his nine boards and five assists in 40 minutes of action. Sophomore Dan Sheppard (El Cajon, CA/Valhalla) posted a double-double performance with 13 points and a game-high 12 rebounds in 40 minutes, while Ball finished the contest with 14 points (5-10 FG), including a 4-of-9 shooting performance from behind the arc.
Newspaper Box Score Coast Guard Academy vs Wheaton College 2/21/04 3:00 p.m. at Emerson Gymnasium, Norton, Mass. At Emerson Gymnasium, Norton, Mass. WHEATON COLLEGE 62, COAST GUARD ACADEMY 54 COAST GUARD ACADEMY (3-19) Jason Nelson 6-15 4-4 19; Ryan Ball 5-10 0-0 14; Dan Sheppard 6-17 1-2 13; Kevin Edes 1-3 2-2 4; Charlie Nguyen 0-1 2-2 2; Peter Gavin 1-6 0-0 2; Mario Teixeira 0-0 0-0 0; Rob Foos 0-1 0-0 0; H.B. Baker 0-3 0-0 0. Totals 19-56 9-10 54. WHEATON COLLEGE (15-10) Josean Vega 7-13 1-3 17; James Greenslit 6-8 0-1 16; Richard Henninger 4-7 2-4 10; Scott Mahan 4-11 1-2 9; Mark Ledwell 1-3 1-2 3; Mike Stanton 1-4 1-1 3; Sean Kelly 0-2 2-5 2; Frankie Whall 0-4 2-6 2; Collin Shattuck 0-0 0-0 0; Brian Zukowski 0-1 0-0 0; Ben Davis 0-0 0-0 0; David Powell 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 23-53 10-24 62. Coast Guard Academy........... 25 29 - 54 Wheaton College............... 33 29 - 62 3-point goals-Coast Guard Academy 7-26 (Ryan Ball 4-9; Jason Nelson 3-9; Charlie Nguyen 0-1; Peter Gavin 0-4; H.B. Baker 0-3), Wheaton College 6-15 (James Greenslit 4-4; Josean Vega 2-5; Scott Mahan 0-1; Mike Stanton 0-1; Sean Kelly 0-2; Frankie Whall 0-1; Richard Henninger 0-1). Fouled out--Coast Guard Academy-None, Wheaton College-None. Rebounds-Coast Guard Academy 35 (Dan Sheppard 12), Wheaton College 37 (Scott Mahan 11). Assists-Coast Guard Academy 11 (Jason Nelson 5), Wheaton College 11 (Sean Kelly 2; Scott Mahan 2; Richard Henninger 2). Total fouls-Coast Guard Academy 21, Wheaton College 17. A-390