BOX SCORE

BABSON PARK, Mass. – The fifth-seeded United States Coast Guard Academy Bears rallied from a 14-point first-half deficit to record a 62-53 win over fourth-seeded Babson College in the first round of the 2011 New England Women's and Men's Athletic Conference (NEWMAC) Men's Basketball Tournament at Babson's Staake Gymnasium on Wednesday night. With the win, Coast Guard (11-13) advances to Saturday's Semifinal Round at top-seeded WPI, where they will meet the host Engineers at 1 p.m. Meanwhile, Babson sees its season come to a close with a record of 10-15.

Senior Jevon James (St. Thomas, V.I.) scored a game-high 20 points to go with eight rebounds and three blocked shots for Coast Guard, as he shot 7-for-11 from the field and 6-for-7 from the line. Freshman year Kevin Sowers (Monrovia, Md.) added 15 points and six boards for the Bears, while classmate Devonte Weems (Chesapeake Beach, Md.) chipped in with nine points and three blocks. Sophomore Jimmy Knudsen (Ridge, N.Y.) joined James with a team-best eight boards while also collecting four of the Bears' 11 steals.

Babson was led by senior captain Matt Zoia (Nashua, N.H.), who in his final collegiate game hit 7-of-13 from the field, including 4-of-7 from beyond the arc, for a team-high 19 points. Sophomore Alex Rudolph (Bal Harbour, Fla.) added seven points, a game-high nine rebounds, and three steals, sophomore Russell Braithwaite (Brooklyn, N.Y.) contributed six points and seven caroms, and junior Kris Noonan (Boothbay Harbor, Maine) tossed in eight points to go with five rebounds.

Both teams struggled from the field in the contest, with Coast Guard hitting just 19-of-50 shot attempts (38.0 percent) and Babson connecting on only 22-of-63 (34.9 percent). However, the Bears held a decisive advantage at the free throw line, where they sank 21-of-24 (87.5 percent) while Babson hit just 4-of-9 (44.4 percent).

The Beavers dominated play early on, scoring eight unanswered points while holding Coast Guard scoreless for the first 4:38 of the game. The Bears eventually cut their deficit back to just four following five straight points from sophomore Ed Gailor (Lancaster, Pa.), but Babson embarked on a 12-2 run to extend their advantage to 14 at 25-11 with 7:45 remaining in the first half.

The hosts still led by double figures at 28-15 after a Zoia bucket with 6:29 left, but Coast Guard erupted for a 10-0 run over the next three minutes to get back to within three, 28-25. Babson would eventually extend the margin to six at the break, taking a 33-27 lead into the locker room.

The Beavers maintained a slim cushion for the first five minutes of the second stanza before Coast Guard finally moved in front, 36-35, courtesy of a three-pointer by sophomore Greg Marshall (Gaithersburg, Md.) with 14:26 left in the game. Sophomore Marcus McDermott (Milton, Mass.) would hit a lay-up at the other end to give the advantage back to Babson less than a minute later, but that would prove to be the Beavers' final lead of the contest.

Coast Guard surged back in front with a lay-up by James with 13:30 left, and a jumper by Weems and two free throws from Knudsen gave the visitors a 42-37 cushion less than a minute later. Babson would then stage a rally of its own to eventually pull even at 44-44 following a trifecta from Rudolph with 11:29 remaining, but the Bears rattled off six straight points to take the lead for good. Sowers hit the go-ahead basket, James added a jumper, and Sowers knocked down two freebies as Coast Guard went up, 50-44, with 9:25 on the clock.

Babson would threaten to regain the lead twice in the final seven minutes, but each time Coast Guard responded with a quick run to maintain control of the contest. A lay-up by Braithwaite capped a 5-0 burst that pulled the Beavers to within one at 50-49 with seven minutes left, but the Bears answered with four straight points to extend their advantage. Zoia then drained his fourth three of the game to make it 54-52 with just over four minutes remaining, but Coast Guard would finish the contest with an 8-1 run to clinch the 62-53 victory. James hit a clutch lay-up in traffic to ignite the run, while Sowers hit 4-of-5 from the free throw line in the final minute to help seal the win.