Corey Diethorn, Patrick Shea lead Greyhound men's basketball past Massachusetts Lowell, 69-54, in Northeast-10 Conference quarterfinal action

March 3, 2008

ASSUMPTION 69, MASSACHUSETTS LOWELL 54

WORCESTER, Mass. --- The Assumption College men's basketball team employed a stifling team defense and had four double-figure scorers en route to a convincing 69-54 Northeast-10 Conference quarterfinal round victory over the University of Massachusetts Lowell MONDAY night at the Laska Gym.

Senior forward COREY DIETHORN (Pittsburgh, PA/Sewickley) (10 points) was the defensive focus with a career-high six blocked shots and game-leading eight rebounds, while junior swing PATRICK SHEA (Salem, MA/Salem) was an offensive presence with a team-leading 15 points and six assists to go with three steals. The Greyhounds scored 22 points off turnovers.

The third-seeded Greyhounds travel to Albany, NY for a semifinal matchup with second-seeded Saint Rose Thursday at 7 p.m. The game will be webcast by ne10tv as are all Northeast-10 Conference basketball games.

Northeast-10 Conference Quarterfinals (March 3, 2008)

No. 3 Assumption 69, No. 11 Massachusetts Lowell 54

No. 2 Saint Rose 64, No. 7 Bryant 61

No. 1 Bentley 67, No. 8 Le Moyne 64, ot

No. 5 Stonehill 60, No. 4 Pace 47

Northeast-10 Conference Semifinals (March 6, 2008)

No. 3 Assumption at No. 2 Saint Rose, 7 p.m.

No. 5 Stonehill at No. 1 Bentley, 7 p.m.

Northeast-10 Conference Championship (March 8, 2008)

highest remaning seed hosts, 1 p.m.

The Greyhounds raced to a 31-20 halftime advantage holding the usually sharpshooting River Hawks to eight-for-27 floor accuracy (.296). They utilized a 15-2 run to move from a 10-10 deadlock to a 25-12 lead and never looked back.

A three-pointer by River Hawks' senior guard DASHON HARPER (Columbus, OH/Bishop Brady) (game-high 19 points) gave his team a 10-7 advantage with 15:51 left in the half---it would be their final lead.

A baseline jumper by senior forward GREG TWOMEY (Groton, MA/Groton-Dunstable) and two ensuing free throws put the Greyhounds in front 11-10 with 14:39 left. Shea then drilled an extra-long three-pointer and sophomore guard COURTLAND BLUFORD (Ft. Washington, MD/St. Vicnent Pallotti) (11 points) hit a lane jumper and then a corner three-pointer to give the Hounds a nine-point advantage (19-10) with 12:59 remaining.

The River Hawks' senior guard JAMAEL LYNCH (Brooklyn, NY/Bishop Loughlin) then hit a jumper to interrupt the Greyhounds' spurt. Then freshman forward MIKE BALDARELLI (Sutton, MA/Holy Name) converted a lane jumper on a feed from Shea off a turnover, junior guard MITCH BAJEMA (Whitinsville, MA/Whitinsville Christian) hit a jumper and Diethorn finished the streak with a pair of free throws for a 25-12 lead.

The Greyhounds would then put-it-away opening the second half scoring the first 11 points.

Shea scored on a nice feed inside from Twomey and then Diethorn, Bluford, Shea and senior forward MIKE FOTI (Franklin, MA/Franklin) (10 points) hit consecutive jumpers and Foti added a free throw to make it 42-20 with 16:30 left.

River Hawks' freshman forward CONNOR WETZEL (Cincinnati, OH/Wyoming) hit a jumper with 15:00 left to stop the streak. But, Shea hit two free throws and Baldarelli a wing three-pointer to make 47-22 with 13:45 remaining. A three-pointer by Bajema with 5:52 left would give the Greyhounds their biggest bulge (27 points) at 62-35.

GREYHOUND NOTES: the Greyhounds win was their first over Massachusetts Lowell in playoff action and gave them a 2-1 advantage in the seasons series . . . the Hounds have played Saint Rose just once in conference postseason action winning 76-69 in the 2002 quarterfinal round in the Laska Gym . . . the Hounds are now 18-5 in conference playoff action in the Laska Gym . . . senior forward COREY DIETHORN (Pittsburgh, PA/Sewickley) now has 1,089 career points and 156 career blocks . . . senior forward GREG TWOMEY (Groton, MA/Groton-Dunstable) now has 1,005 career points.

CLICK HERE FOR COMPLETE SCORING SUMMARY