Men’s Basketball Outshoot Westfield State, 86-83

NORTH ADAMS, Mass. – The MCLA Men's Basketball team welcomed the Westfield State Owls into the Amsler Campus Center Gymnasium this evening for a MASCAC clash. Craig Williams paced the Trailblazers with 22 points, six rebounds, and six assists, while Jaxen Potter finished with a double-double of 12 points and 11 boards as MCLA picked up its first conference win of the season, 86-83.

THE BASICS:

• Date: Wednesday, January 14, 2026
• Score: Westfield 83, MCLA 86
• Records: Westfield State University Owls 10-4 (MASCAC 2-1) | MCLA Trailblazers 4-8 (MASCAC 1-2)

HIGHLIGHTS

• The first half was tightly played with neither team getting out to more than a three-point lead in the opening six minutes until MCLA's senior forward Jayden Mills (Bronx, NY) got the crowd on their feet with a dunk to put the Trailblazers ahead 16-12 with 14:08 on the first half clock.
• The Owls would respond with a three-pointer and a layup by Xavier Lewis to take a 17-16 lead. The teams continued to trade blows with MCLA going up 25-20 when junior guard Kymani Harley (Pittsfield, MA) drained a three with ten and a half minutes to go.
• Westfield would pull even again on a long three by A.Z. Allah to make it 31 all with just under six and a half minutes to go in the first frame.
• This time it was the home team that would respond, doing so with a 13-3 run that started with a layup from graduate student forward Jaxen Potter (Ballston Spa, NY) and was capped by a three from senior guard Craig Williams (Dover, DE), build out to their largest lead of the game at 44-37 with just under three minutes to play in the half. MCLA would go into the halftime locker room up 47-41.
• The game stayed close in the second half, opening with four ties and seven lead changes in the first 10 minutes. The owls' Kenny Rogers kicked off the visiting team's run to their largest lead of the night, converting on a layup while drawing a foul for a plus one to go up 67-64. A layup by Cam Hoekstra with 703 to play would cap the 7-0 run and make the score 71-64.
• The Trailblazers wouldn't go away, however, with just under six minutes to play, junior guard Kamau Franks (Converse, TX) lit a fire under the team with a layup to start a 13-4 run that would be capped by an open three from Mills, putting MCLA up 77-75 with just over three minutes to play.
• Rogers would bounce back for the road team, hitting a jumper from 15 feet out to tie the game again at 77 all with just under three minutes to play, before picking up his fifth foul on a shot by Mills.
• Mills would put the Trailblazers in front for good, making the first of his free throws, and Williams would ice the game away for MCLA, hitting three of four free throws in the final 16 seconds.
• Williams would lead the Trailblazers with 22 points and six assists. Junior guard Colin Quinn (South Hadley, MA) added another 16 points, while Potter finished with a double-double of 12 points and 11 rebounds.
• Westfield's Lewis led all scorers with 24 points, while Rogers and Jason James scored 19 and 16 points, respectively. Allah just missed a double-double, ending the night with nine points and a team-leading eight rebounds.
• MCLA made the most of a 43-31 edge in rebounds, including 18 on the offensive end to power a 19-13 edge in second chance points.

INSIDE THE NUMBERS

• Field Goals / %: Westfield 31-63 / 49.2%, MCLA 30-66 / 45.5%
• 3 Points / %: Westfield 8-15 / 53.3%, MCLA 14-32 / 43.8%
• Free Throw / %: Westfield 13-22 / 59.1%, MCLA 12-18 / 66.7%
• Rebounds: Westfield 31, MCLA 43
• Points off Turnovers: Westfield 13, MCLA 9
• Second Chance Points: Westfield 13, MCLA 19
• Points in the Paint: Westfield 40, MCLA 24
• Bench Points: Westfield 6, MCLA 18

UP NEXT:

On Saturday, MCLA will be back in action when it travels to Bridgewater State and the Tinsley Center for a MASCAC matchup with the Bears. Tip-off is scheduled for 2 p.m.

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