Men’s Basketball Fall to Westfield in MASCAC Semifinal Round

WESTFIELD, Mass. – The MCLA Men's Basketball team headed to Westfield State this evening for their MASCAC playoff semifinal matchup with the Owls. Craig Williams led all scorers with 26 points for the Trailblazers, but a balanced Westfield attack that included all five starters in double figures allowed the top-seeded Owl team to move on to the finals.

THE BASICS

• Date: Friday, February 27, 2026
• Score: #6 MCLA 68, #1 Westfield 95
• Records: MCLA Trailblazers 9-16 (MASCAC 5-9) | Westfield State University Owls 21-5 (MASCAC 12-2)

HOW IT HAPPENED

• Westfield started the game hot, breaking out a 21-4 lead after the Owls' Joe Thomson forced a pair of MCLA turnovers. The first led to Thomson going to the charity stripe and converting both free throws, and the second led to a layup by Xavier Lewis that forced the Trailblazers to call a timeout.
• MCLA responded after the strategy meeting, stringing together a six point run that included a layup by senior guard Craig Williams (Dover, DE), a jump shot by junior guard Colin Quinn (South Hadley, MA), and a second chance put back layup by freshman guard Frank Field (Adams, MA) to pull back within 11 points at 21-10 with just under 10 minutes to play.
• The run would be the highlight of the first half for MCLA, and Westfield would go into the halftime break leading 46-27.
• The Owls would maintain a lead of at least 15 points for the remainder of the game. It was three by Williams with 8:08 remaining to get to that shortened deficit.
• Williams led all scorers with 26 points, including a 5-9 night beyond the arc. Williams also shared the team-high role in rebounds with eight, matching Field. Quinn was second for the Trailblazers with 14 points.
• Westfield was paced by 22 points by Kenney Rogers, followed by 19 points from Jason James, 17 by Lewis, 16 by A.Z. Allah, and 12 by Thomson. Thomson finished with a double-double thanks to a game-high 10 rebounds.

INSIDE THE NUMBERS

• Field Goals / %: MCLA 25-66 / 37.9%, Westfield 37-64 / 57.8%
• 3 Points / %: MCLA 9-25 / 36%, Westfield 2-12 / 16.7%
• Free Throw / %: MCLA 9-12 / 75%, Westfield 19-28 / 67.9%
• Rebounds: MCLA 36, Westfield 40
• Points off Turnovers: MCLA 9, Westfield 22
• Second Chance Points: MCLA 19, Westfield 10
• Points in the Paint: MCLA 30, Westfield 56
• Bench Points: MCLA 13, Westfield 9

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