Boston, MA - The men's basketball team of Fisher College squeaked by the Emerson College Lions, earning a 79-77 victory in overtime. The Falcons improve their record to 4-2 while Emerson moves to 2-3.
The Falcons took the lead in the game when O.J. Moore (Houston, TX) made a jump shot, putting the team up 2-0. Emerson then jumped to a 6-4 lead with 17 minutes remaining in the half. After Darrel Grady (Staten Island, NY) knotted the score at six, the Lions held the lead until the 8:32 mark when Kyle Holmes (Hamden, CT) hit three free throws to put the Falcons up 16-15.
The Lions took back the lead again, but not before the Falcons went on a six-point run, putting them up 27-22. Emerson managed to bring the score within one (27-26) before Fisher went on another run; this time a run of seven points to bring the score to 34-26. Tyler Shular hit the last three pointer of the half for the Falcons, giving them a total of 37 points for the half while Emerson scored only 30 points in the half.
Falcons' players Jameel Yousif (Chicago, IL), Ira Haywood (Las Vegas, NV), Shular, and Holmes were the top scorers in the first half. Yousif scored eight points in the Falcons 37 point first half. Shular and Holmes both had seven points and Haywood had six.
Emerson was led by Austin Pickney and Tyson Hallowell, both scoring seven points for the Lions.
The second half started a little shaky for the Falcons, but they changed momentum at the 12:36 mark when Orlando Zayas (Boston, MA) made a lay up to give the Falcons an 11-point lead. Lions' players buckled down and went on an eight-point run to decrease the Fisher lead to 53-50.
For the last 10 minutes, the Falcons held onto the lead when Hallowell hit a three pointer to put the Lions up 70-69. A free throw by Shular knotted the game at 70, and the teams were forced into overtime.
In overtime, the Falcons scored first, but the Lions pounced and tied it back up at 72. Shular increased the score to 74-72 when he hit his two free throws. Emerson took back the lead on a three-point shot, putting them up by one, 75-74. A Moore layup, a free throw by Grady, and a layup by Haywood secured the 79-77 win for the Falcons in overtime.
Shular was the top scorer for the Falcons, recording 19 points and five rebounds on the night. Other key Falcons in the victory were Yousif (14 point, eight rebounds), Haywood (12 points, four rebounds) and Holmes (12 points).
The Falcons return to action after the Thanksgiving break on Thursday, December 4, when they travel to Vermont Technical College for 6:00 pm tip-off.