Senior Brian Bannister (Boston, Mass.) became just the fifth player in Johnson & Wales history to score 1,000 career points when he drained a three-pointer with 18:12 left in the first half as the JWU men’s basketball team dropped a 72-66 decision against Emmanuel Great Northeast Athletic Conference contest at the Harborside RAC on Tuesday evening.
Bannister scored a game-high 28 points and added five rebounds for Johnson & Wales. Fellow senior Brian Fernandes (Fall River, Mass.) finished with 16 points in the setback for the Wildcats. Freshman Rob Williams-Hilton (Detroit, Mich.) led the way for Emmanuel with 19 points, five assists and two steals while fellow freshman Mack Spellman (Clinton, N.Y.) added a double-double with 20 points and 11 rebounds for the Saints.
Both teams struggled from the field early in the game with Emmanuel shooting 33% (12-of-36) from the field while Johnson & Wales shot 27% (10-37) from the field. JWU led by six early in the first half after a layup by Bannister gave the team a 10-4 advantage with 13:24 on the clock. Emmanuel’s largest lead of the half came when a jumper by senior Jason Brown (Amherst, Mass.) gave the team a 27-21 lead with 1:26 on the clock. The Saints took the 31-25 lead into the locker room at halftime.
The visiting Saints led by as many as 10 points early in the second half when a layup put the team up 36-26 with 18:24 left in the game. The Wildcats responded, however and cut the lead to just three points when a three-pointer by Bannister made the score 39-36 with 13:25 left in the contest. JWU continued to chip away at the lead and took their first lead of the game when a jumper by sophomore Japhet Kerr (Mt. Kisco, N.Y.) gave the team the 56-55 lead with 5:32 left on the clock. The two teams then traded baskets down the stretch before Emmanuel took a five point lead (62-57) with just :30 left. The Wildcats again responded and a three-pointer by Bannister cut the lead to three. The team got to within one after a pair of free-throws by sophomore Tirone McCray (Brockton, Mass.) made the score 67-66 with :20 left in the game. That would be as close as JWU would get, however as Emmanuel hit five free-throws down the stretch to take the 72-66 victory.
With the loss Johnson & Wales is now 9-12, 7-7 in the GNAC while Emmanuel improves to 15-6, 13-1 in league play. The Wildcats will return to action on Thursday, February 9th when they travel to Emerson for a GNAC contest at 8:00 p.m.
www.jwu.edu/prov/athletics
For more information, contact Dan Booth (401) 598-1632