Last-second Williams Layup Secures 83-82 Men's Basketball Win Over New England College

NORTH ADAMS, Mass. – The MCLA Men's Basketball team returned to the Amsler Campus Center Gymnasium this afternoon, welcoming the New England College Pilgrims for a non-conference matchup. Colby Burleson and Frank Field set new career highs with 18 and 22 points, respectively, and Craig Williams laid one in with .4 seconds on the clock as the Trailblazers rallied back to win over New England College, 83-82.

THE BASICS:

• Date: Saturday, December 6, 2025
• Score: NEC 82, MCLA 83
• Records: New England College 5-3 (GNAC 0-0) | MCLA Trailblazers 2-4 (MASCAC 0-0)

HIGHLIGHTS

• NEC opened the game with a 9-3 run capped by a layup by Kenray Emadamerho. A steal and quick layup with 16 and a half minutes to play from MCLA freshman guard Frank Field (Adams, MA) would start to turn the momentum in the direction of the home team.
• The teams traded baskets for a few minutes until a layup with 12:23 to play by Field put MCLA ahead 18-17, kicking off a 21-10 run that ended with Field draining a three with 4:22 to play in the half.
• The Trailblazers would maintain that lead into halftime, finishing the half up 47-34. Field would finish the first half with 17 points, while senior guard Craig Williams (Dover, DE) added 12 points.
• MCLA kept the momentum to open the second half, working out to their largest lead of the game at 17 points with just over five minutes off the second half clock when sophomore guard Leondre Sanchez (Willimantic, CT) converted a three-point play after being fouled while driving to the hoop and looping one in.
• The Pilgrims weren't done yet, as they chipped away at that lead until a pair of made free throws by Mike Strazzeri tied the game at 79 all with 69 seconds remaining. A miss by the Trailblazers and a layup by Jasen Stovall would then put the NEC in front with 46 seconds to play. Another MCLA miss and a foul put Emadamerho at the line. He would miss the first but drain the second to go up 82-79.
• Williams would respond with a driving layup of his own to cut the Pilgrim lead back to one point as MCLA used a timeout.
• The Trailblazers came out of the huddle applying a full press on the inbound play that resulted in a steal from freshman guard Alex Parker (Melbourne, Australia). Another MCLA timeout with seven seconds to play allowed the home team to set up a final play to secure the win.
• The inbounds pass would go to Williams, who watched the clock before driving to the hoop and cutting between three defenders for a left-handed layup that bounced off the glass and in with 0.4 seconds to play.
• Field finished the night with a double-double of 22 points and 11 rebounds.
• Williams recorded 18 points and seven boards to go with an assist and a steal.
• Senior guard Colby Burleson (Pittsboro, NC) made his first career start and scored a career-high 18 points on 6-8 shooting, including 5-7 from behind the arc.
• Four Pilgrims finished the afternoon with double-digit points, including 19 points by Luke Montejo, 13 by Stovall, 12 by Strazzeri, and 11 by Josh Robie.

INSIDE THE NUMBERS

• Field Goals / %: NEC 29-61 / 47.5%, MCLA 30-67 / 44.8%
• 3 Points / %: NEC 7-25 / 28 %, MCLA 12-26 / 46.2%
• Free Throw / %: NEC 17-22 / 77.3%, MCLA 11-17 / 64.7%
• Rebounds: NEC 36, MCLA 38
• Points off Turnovers: NEC 16, MCLA 15
• Second Chance Points: NEC 14, MCLA 17
• Points in the Paint: NEC 36, MCLA 30
• Bench Points: NEC 23, MCLA 8

UP NEXT:

On Sunday, MCLA will be back in action when it plays host to Elms College in the Amsler Campus Center Gymnasium for a non-conference matchup with the Blazers. Tip-off is scheduled for 2 p.m.

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