BOSTON, Mass. – Sophomore forward Corey Therriault (Auburn, Maine) scored 17 of his game-high 22 points in the first half to help the Wentworth men's basketball team to its third straight win , 66-40, over Gordon in The Commonwealth Coast Conference opener for both teams played at Tansey Gymnasium.
The Leopards, who had defeated the defending conference champions in a non-league contest nine days ago, jumped out to a 13-2 lead 6:27 into the contest thanks to a pair of free throws from senior forward Sam Herrick (Duxbury, Mass.) and 11 straight points from Therriault, who began the game 5-for-5 from the floor with three trifectas. A senior forward Greg Walker (Uxbridge, Mass.) layup and a jumper from senior guard Austin Bentson (Branchville, N.J.) cut the lead to 13-6 with 12:28 to play, but the hosts scored the next six points – including four from senior forward Mike McClure (Blue Bell, Pa.) – to take a 19-6 lead.
Leading by 10 (21-11) with 7:49 left, Wentworth would take its largest lead of the half at 29-11 when Therriault buried a three, Herrick converted a layup, and junior guard Eric Prue (Auburn, Maine) connected from long range. The Leopards led, 32-18, at the break after holding Gordon to 30.8 percent from the floor and having a 22-14 advantage on the glass.
Wentworth upped its lead to 17 on a three pointer from junior guard Adam Dombrowski (Dunstable, Mass.) with just under 17 minutes remaining, but back-to-back baskets by Walker and sophomore forward David Dempsey (Wallingford, Conn.) trimmed the lead to 13. That would be as close as the Fighting Scots would come as a Therriault three pointer began a 17-6 spurt and gave Wentworth a 55-31 lead with 8:03 to play.
Therriault finished the game shooting 8-for-14 from the floor, including 5-for-9 from behind the arc, and also had five rebounds. Herrick scored 12 points and hauled down a game-high 14 rebounds, while Prue, Dombrowski, and freshman forward Davon Daniels (Paterson, N.J.) each added six points. Prue, Dombrowski, and junior forward Matt Harte (Troy, N.Y.) combined for 12 of Wentworth's 23 assists.
For the Fighting Scots, Dempsey had 10 points and six rebounds, while Bentson added nine points. Gordon was held to 34 percent shooting for the game and was outrebounded by a 43-29 margin.
With the win Wentworth evens its record at 6-6 and stands at 1-0 in TCCC play. The Leopards are at Eastern Nazarene on Tuesday night. Gordon drops to 4-8 (0-1) and hosts Anna Maria on Tuesday.
