Williams and Field Have Big Night, Men’s Basketball Storm Back to Take Down Falcons 88-85

FITCHBURG, Mass. – The MCLA Men's Basketball team took to the road this evening for a MASCAC matchup at Fitchburg State University. The Trailblazers rallied back from as many as 11 points down to surge past the Falcons, 88-85, keeping their playoff hopes alive going into senior day on Saturday.

THE BASICS

• Date: Wednesday, February 18, 2026
• Score: MCLA 88, Fitchburg 85
• Records: MCLA Trailblazers 8-14 (MASCAC 5-8) | Fitchburg State University Falcons 11-13 (MASCAC 5-8)

HIGHLIGHTS

• MCLA jumped out to an early 12-8 lead. First senior forward Jayden Mills (Bronx, NY) converted on both of his opportunities at the foul line, on the second of which junior guard Kamau Franks (Converse, TX) drew a foul from a Fitchburg player attempting to box out. On the ensuing possession, freshman guard Frank Field (Adams, MA) drained a three from the right elbow, producing a five-point swing from one point down to up by four in only 20 seconds off the clock.
• The Falcons would respond with a run of their own consisting of threes by Nicolas Von Zboray and Matthew Drayton, flipping the momentum back to the home team.  
• The Trailblazers rallied again late in the first half. Trailing 27-20 with 5:44 to go in the first half, MCLA again converted chances at the line, two by Field followed by senior guard Craig Williams (Dover, DE) doing the same. Field then corralled an offensive rebound and immediately put it back up for a quick jumper in the paint to pull within one with four and a half minutes to play in the half.
• Fitchburg closed out the half with a 9-2 run to go into the intermission ahead 36-28.
• The second half was the "Craig Williams Show^tm", with the senior guard scoring 23 of his team-leading 27 points after the break.
• Before Williams' heroics could start, the Trailblazers needed to play some catch-up. The home team again built up a lead, growing their lead to 11 points at 67-56 after Zboray connected on both free throws after the MCLA bench drew a technical foul.
• The tech though fired the road team up, and the Trailblazers kicked off an 11-1 run, cutting the Falcons' lead from double-digits to a single point. Williams first put on his Superman cape and drove to the bucket for a layup while drawing a foul that he converted for a three-point play. A pair of threes by graduate student guard Colby Burleson (Pittsboro, NC) followed by two more free throws by Field brought MCLA within a point at 68-67 with 7:21 still on the clock.
• The teams played hot potato with the lead as there were at least three lead changes and a pair of ties within the next six minutes of play. With less than 90 seconds to go, Williams began the Trailblazers' closeout, breaking down a Fitchburg defender before stepping back to sink a fallaway three from the right elbow and going up 80-79.
• On the ensuing Falcon possession, senior forward Jayden Mills (Bronx, NY) locked down Fitchburg's Joshua Jean Charles into forcing an awkward shot from the low post that would go out of bounds off a home player.
• After a timeout, Williams was then fouled driving to the hoop and completed both opportunities before coming down with the rebound when the Fitchburg three at the other end hit the back of the rim and bounced out Williams at the foul line, forcing the Falcons to have to foul, and Williams again converted both shots, advancing the lead to 84-79.
• An impressive three with 6.6 seconds to play by Xavier Smaltz gave the home team some hope, but it was then crushed by MCLA's efforts at the line, with both Williams and Field draining a pair of shots at the line, rendering a last-second, three-quarter court three by Drayton as a moot point.
• Drayton led all scorers with 28 points, followed by Williams with 27 and Field with 25 points. Mills just missed a double-double, finishing with ten points and a team-high nine rebounds. Burleson rounded out the quartet of Trailblazers with double-digit point totals.
• The game was decided at the charity stripe with MCLA shooting an extraordinary 86% (24-28) from the free throw line, compared to the Falcons 57% (8-14). Williams and Field paced the Trailblazers, going 9-9 and 7-7, respectively.

INSIDE THE NUMBERS

• Field Goals / %: MCLA 26-62 / 41.9%, Fitchburg 34-69 / 49.3%
• 3 Points / %: MCLA 12-32 / 37.5%, Fitchburg 9-17 / 52.9%
• Free Throw / %: MCLA 24-28 / 85.7%, Fitchburg 8-14 / 57.1%
• Rebounds: MCLA 37, Fitchburg 38
• Points off Turnovers: MCLA 10, Fitchburg 11
• Second Chance Points: MCLA 14, Fitchburg 11
• Points in the Paint: MCLA 28, Fitchburg 46
• Bench Points: MCLA 18, Fitchburg 27

UP NEXT

On Saturday, MCLA will be back in action when it plays host to Salem State University in the Amsler Campus Center Gymnasium for a MASCAC matchup with the Vikings. Tip-off is scheduled for 2 p.m. The Trailblazers will be honoring their senior class before the game, so please arrive early to celebrate with us.

STAY CONNECTED

For the latest on MCLA Athletics, follow the Trailblazers via our social media platforms on Facebook, Instagram, or X (formerly Twitter).