Men’s Basketball Bring Thomas College Terriers to Heel

AMHERST, Mass. – The combination of seniors Dylan Morris-Gray, Quentin Gittens, and junior JoJo Garcia nearly outscored the entire Thomas College team as the MCLA Men's Basketball team rolled past the Thomas University Terriers in the opening round of the Ken Wright Invitational at Amherst College this evening. All three players finished the game with 15 points each.

THE BASICS:

• Date: Friday, November 17, 2023
• Score: Thomas College 48, MCLA 66
• Records: Thomas College Terriers 2-2 (NAC 0-0) | MCLA Trailblazers 3-1 (MASCAC 0-0)

HIGHLIGHTS

• MCLA never trailed in the game, scoring the first points of the game on a free throw from Jaxen Potter. The Trailblazers opened the game with a 14-3 run and never looked back.
• MCLA went into the locker room at halftime with a 29-19 advantage before outscoring the Terriers 37-29 in the second half.
• Quentin Gittens recorded his second double-double of the year, scoring 15 points while pulling down 13 rebounds, including 11 on the defensive end alone. Gittens also helped to distribute the ball, handing out a game-high four assists.
• Dylan Morris-Gray also scored 15 points on a 6-14 shooting night while pulling down eight boards.
• Completing the trio of 15-point scorers for the Trailblazers was JoJo Garcia, who scored his in 19 minutes off the bench on a 4-8 shooting performance, all from beyond the three-point line. Garcia was also a perfect seven for seven from the free throw line and hauled in eight rebounds.
• Potter just missed his first career double-double, collecting a career-high 12 rebounds and scoring nine points.
• The Terriers were led by Parker Desjardins, who scored 13 points in 26 minutes off the Thomas bench. He also had a team-high six rebounds and two assists. Mark McDonald was the only other Terrier to reach double-digits, scoring 12 points on 5-11 shooting.

INSIDE THE NUMBERS

• Field Goals / %: Thomas 20-61 / 32.8%, MCLA 23-70 / 32.9%
• 3 Points / %: Thomas 3-21 / 14.3%, MCLA 7-30 / 23.3%
• Free Throw / %: Thomas 5-10 / 50.0%, MCLA 13-17 / 76.5%
• Rebounds: Thomas 35, MCLA 59
• Points off Turnovers: Thomas 12, MCLA 19
• Second Chance Points: Thomas 0, MCLA 16
• Points in the Paint: Thomas 32, MCLA 30

UP NEXT:

On Saturday, MCLA will be back in action when they wrap up the Ken Wright Invitational against the host Amherst College Mammoths. The teams will take the floor for a 2 p.m. tip-off.

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