After thrilling semifinal victories on Thursday night, second seed Salem State and fifth seed Worcester State advance to the MASCAC Men's Basketball Championship game on Saturday.

#5 Worcester State 71, #1 Fitchburg State 68 Box Score

FITCHBURG, Mass. – In a top battle, fifth seed Worcester State upset top seed Fitchburg State 71-68 in semifinal final round action of the 2016-17 Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference (MASCAC) Men's Basketball postseason tournament at the Parkinson Gymnasium this evening.

The Lancers overcame a 62-59 deficit over the final ten minutes of the game, dropping nine unanswered points in crunch time to complete an energized comeback on the road - their second-straight road victory in the playoffs.

Worcester State senior Paul Brooks had a huge game when it mattered most, leading his team with a double-double (19 points & 18 rebounds) while recording seven blocks. Classmate Ryan DiBernardo added 17 points on 5-for-16 (4-for-7 from three point range) and logged a team-high 38 minutes of action.

Fitchburg State was paced by senior Jaleel Bell's game best 22 points on 8-for-21 from the field, while adding six rebounds and five steals for the Green and Gold, while freshman Nicholas Tracy put up 13 points to go along with four rebounds, three steals, and three blocks.

Worcester State began the game still riding momentum from its first-round win over Westfield State, and it was evident as the Lancers took an early 9-4 lead with DiBernardo  scoring five points during that time.

Fitchburg State broke out of its early slump with 13:24 left in the first half, controlling an 11-2 scoring run and taking a one-point lead (18-17). Senior Jalen Williams set the tone offensively during the span with five points.

Throughout the final ten minutes of the first half the two teams battled back-and-fourth, but neither were able to gain separation before Brooks took control of the inside game for the Lancers, scoring eight points to help his team head into the locker room with its one-point lead (35-34).

The game unfolded after halftime much like it did to start the first half as it was competitive and very close on the scoreboard.

The teams matched buckets until Fitchburg State embarked on a 23-6 scoring run to take the largest lead of the game, 62-50 with 10:43 remaining in the second frame.  

Worcester State responded roughly a minute later DiBernardo connected on a pair of three pointers bookended a conversion inside the paint from Brooks, reducing the gap to four-points (62-58).

With five minutes left and still trailing, 66-59, Worcester State turned it up on both sides of the court, playing stingy defense, while converting it to points on the offensive end.

After a layup from Josh Bosworth pushed the lead up to 68-59 for Fitchburg State, the Lancers answered right back as DiBernardo hit a layup before Maynard-native, freshman Cal Howes buried a triple, cutting the lead again to four points with four minutes left in the game.

From there, Worcester State continued its pressure scoring five unanswered before senior guard Aaron Anniballi put the game out of reach for good, knocking down a pair of free throws from the charity stripe, and giving the Lancers a 71-68 lead.

Fitchburg State made one final attempt to force overtime with seven seconds left, hoisting a corner three pointer, but Worcester State was able to coral the rebound, resulting in the 71-68 final.

Throughout the game, Worcester State held the margin on the glass by a 48-42 mark, while finishing with a 19-14 edge in assists and second-chance points (18-16). Fitchburg State shot 26-for-67 overall (38.8%) and 7-for-16 shots from beyond the arc (43.8%), while the Lancers finished 26-for-68 overall (38.2%) and 7-for-21 from three point range (33.3%).

For Worcester State, senior Jeremy Bacon picked up the Lancers' second double-double of the night, scoring 11 points and grabbing 11 rebounds in 37 minutes of action. Anniballi and junior Corey Gatta added eight and seven points respectively.

For the Falcons, Bosworth picked up ten points on 4-for-13 shooting while adding seven rebounds, while senior guard Leonny Burgos feel shy of a double-double with a game-high nine assists, eight points as well as five rebounds and four steals. Junior Mustapha Koroma was also solid for the Falcons, finishing with a bench-high eight points in 18 minutes of action.

Fitchburg State concludes its 2016-17 campaign with an over record of 15-11 and a 10-2 clip in conference play, while the fifth seeded Lancers of Worcester State University (10-17, 6-6 MASCAC) will  take on second seeded Salem State in the MASCAC championship game on Saturday February 25^th with tip-off coming at 1:00 PM. 

#2 Salem State 69 #3 Bridgewater State 68  Box Score

Salem, Mass. — Freshmen guard Sean Bryan's (Lowell, MA)  three-pointer with five-seconds left completed a 17-point comeback as the Vikings of Salem State clipped the Bears of Bridgewater State 69-68 in the semifinals of the Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference playoffs Thursday night. The victory pushed the 2 seed Vikings into the championship game against the 5 Lancers of Worcester State, which upset top seed Fitchburg State on Thursday night. The championship will be played on Saturday Feb 25, at 1:00 p.m. at Twohig Gymnasium on the campus of Salem State.

After a fast start offensively, the Vikings' production came to a screeching halt for a three-minute span at the 16:00 mark. The Bears limited Salem State's backcourt of Alex Santos (Lawrence, MA) and Shaquan Murray (Boston, MA) during that stretch while Rocky DeAndrade (Mansfield, MA) led Bridgewater State to an 18-10 lead with five points in that time.  The Vikings had trouble securing the basketball as they committed six turnovers, which the Bears converted into 11 points. Midway through the half, the Vikings found themselves trailing by eight points for a three-minute span, but were able to cut that deficit to just one after Shyheim Davis-Smith  (Boston, MA) and Marcus Faison (Cambridge, MA) converted on two gritty plays in back-to-back possessions. Bridgewater State retaliated to regain a 30-23 lead with the help of Patrick McGuiness's (New City, NY) tenacious defense that led a steal and fast break layup with 1:25 on the clock. Faison however, answered for the Vikings, scoring four points in 20 seconds that cut the deficit to 30-27 at the half. Faison led all players with 11 first half points while collecting five rebounds.

Fawaz Mass (Taunton, MA) and the Bears took over in the beginning of the second half as he sparked an 11-2 run that gave the Bears a 52-35 advantage with 12:21 remaining in the half. With their season looking like it may come to an end early, Jacob Lindland (Hamilton, MA) put Salem State on his back. The junior guard replenished the home crowd and his teammates with the energy they desperately needed by knocking down four three-pointers in a two-minute span that cut the deficit to just five-points, putting the game at 58-53 with just over seven minutes remaining. Bridgewater State quickly rebuilt a 10-point lead as Keyon Armstrong (Medford, MA) and Joseph Carty (Natick, MA) connected from the outside.

Defensively, the Vikings forced 12 turnovers in the second half to shift momentum. Lindland wasn't done providing clutch moments as he drilled another three-pointer to give Salem State their first lead, 65-64 since the opening minutes of the game with two-minutes on the clock. After Mass gave the Bears a 67-65 lead, Murray cut Bridgewater State's lead to a point, 67-66 by hitting one of two free throws after a McGuiness foul. Mass was fouled on the next possession by Rayshaw Matthews (Boston, MA) which removed Matthews from the game. After Mass hit one free throw, Salem State called their final timeout to draw up a play with just 18 seconds remaining. With all eyes on the hot hand of Lindland, the Vikings were forced to go elsewhere with the ball. Checking into the game for the first time in the half, freshmen point guard Bryan was forced to shoot from three-point range after the Bears swarmed Lindland. With a man in his face, Bryan's shot hit nothing, but net to secure the 69-68 victory as Salem State advances to Saturday's MASCAC final against Worcester State.

That epic three-pointer was Bryan's only points of the game. Faison led the Vikings' with 21 points and 11 rebounds while Lindland added 15 points on 5-7 shooting from beyond the arc.

Mass anchored the Bears with 22 points and eight rebounds while DeAndrade added 14 points on 6-8 shooting.

Courtesy of Fitchburg State and Salem State Sports Information