THE BASICS:
 
- Score: MIT 73, Wheaton College 62
 
- Records: MIT (6-7, 2-1 NEWMAC); Wheaton (5-9, 0-3 NEWMAC)
 
- Location: Norton, Mass. (Emerson Gymnasium)
 
- The Lead: The MIT women's basketball team outscored Wheaton College, 17-4, during the final 6:07 of regulation en route to a 73-62 victory in NEWMAC action on Saturday. Five players reached double-digits in scoring as senior Kylie Gallagher (Upton, Mass.) paced the Engineers with 16 points to go along with seven rebounds.
 
HOW IT HAPPENED:
 
- A pair of layups by senior Annika Sougstad (Mahtomedi, Minn.) put MIT on the board as it held a small lead throughout the first quarter, ending with an 18-16 edge.
 
- The tight play continued in the second stanza as Wheaton tied the game four times, the last at 27 with 46 seconds left. The Engineers replied with a layup from first-year Elise Harvey (Wayland, Mass.), keeping them ahead at halftime.
 
- MIT opened the third quarter with a 9-2 burst as two Sougstad free throws established a 38-29 advantage after three minutes expired. The Lyons chipped away at the deficit, coming within 44-41 with 3:30 on the clock. Two free throws by senior Christina Antonakakis (Holmdel, N.J.) along with a layup from Sougstad created some breathing room as MIT went on to hold a 53-46 lead at the end of the frame.
 
- Coming out of the break Wheaton put together a 12-3 run, going ahead at the 6:35 mark. The Engineers quickly knotted the game at 58 courtesy of two free throws by Gallagher, sparking a 14-2 run. The Lyons drained two free throws, narrowing the gap to 67-62 with 2:36 remaining. This was as close as it would get as MIT recorded six points down the stretch to secure the victory.
 
INSIDE THE NUMBERS:
 
- Sougstad finished with 13 points, a game-high 11 rebounds, and five steals while Antonakakis also notched 13 points.
 
- First-year Kamsi Nwogu (Algonquin, Ill.) recorded 12 points and 10 rebounds as sophomore Angie Choi (Cypress, Calif.) chipped in 10 points.
 
- Senior Paula Pieper (Greenville, S.C.) led all players with a career-high nine assists while grabbing a career-high eight rebounds.
 
- MIT ended the day with advantages in rebounds (48-39), points off turnovers (20-14), second-chance points (16-8), bench scoring (13-11), and points in the paint (38-36).
 
- The Engineers shot 36.4 percent (24-of-66) from the floor, 27.8 percent (5-of-18) from three-point range, and 76.9 percent (20-of-26) from the free throw line.
 
- The Lyons shot 36.1 percent (22-of-61) from the floor, 10.5 percent (2-of-19) from behind the arc, and 84.2 percent (16-of-19) at the charity stripe.
 
UP NEXT:
 
- MIT returns to Rockwell Cage on Wednesday, Jan. 26 at 6:00 p.m. when it hosts nationally-ranked No. 13/15 Springfield College in NEWMAC action.
 
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