THE BASICS:
 
- Score: MIT - 70, Wheaton - 66
 
- Records: MIT (3-15, 2-7 NEWMAC), Wheaton (10-8, 4-6 NEWMAC)
 
- Location: Cambridge, Mass. (Rockwell Cage)
 
- The Lead: The MIT men's basketball snapped their losing streak with a thrilling 70-66 NEWMAC victory over Wheaton on Wednesday evening at Rockwell Cage.  
 
HOW IT HAPPENED:

- A layup from first year Will Bland (Virginia Beach, Va.) gave the Engineers a quick 11-4 lead at 16:07. Back-to-back threes from the Lyons got them to within one, and a three from Dimetri Iafrate tied the game at 14.
 
- After the Lyons took an 18-14 lead, the Engineers went on a 13-0 run to pull ahead 27-18. A three from senior Luke Wagner (Austin, Texas) put MIT up 10 at 40-30 with 1:46 left, but the Lyons ended the half on a 6-0 run to send the teams into the break with MIT holding a 40-36 lead.
 
- Wheaton continued to chip away at the MIT lead as an Eoin Morrissey jumper made it a two-point Engineer lead at 18:28. The Lyons remained close but were unable to get even, getting as close as one on a free throw from Iafrate that made it a 50-49 game at 13:36.
 
- Morrissey got Wheaton even on a layup at 11:45, but two free throws from senior Spencer Lin (Menlo Park, Calif.) quickly put MIT back in the lead, and the teams stayed close. A layup from first year Isaac Dobie (Kitty Hawk, N.C.) gave MIT a 62-59 lead with 6:09 left in the game.
 
- Bland sent a pass into Dobie who converted the layup to give the Engineers a 67-63 advantage with 2:06 left. Iafrate made it a 67-66 game with 20 seconds left with a layup, and Bland was fouled and made one of two free throws to make it a 68-66 game with 18 seconds left. After Iafrate missed a jumper, first year Samuel Chen (Bellevue, Wash.) grabbed the rebound and made both free throws to give MIT the 70-66 win.
 
INSIDE THE NUMBERS:

- Lin and Dobie each scored 16 points in the contest with Lin recording a double-double with 10 rebounds. Sophomore Tim Minicozzi (Belmont, Mass.) and first year Merlin Gogolin (New York, New York) each added nine points. Gogolin also grabbed nine rebounds.
 
- Bland finished with nine points, six rebounds, and a team-high five assists. Wagner also finished with eight points.
 
- Iafrate led Wheaton with 18 points and Morrissey added nine points and 12 rebounds.

UP NEXT:
 
- The Engineers will head to Salve Regina on Saturday, January 27th for a 3:00 p.m. NEWMAC contest.
 
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