NORTH ANDOVER, MA. – The Merrimack men’s basketball
team snapped a three-game losing streak, cruising to an 86-47
victory over Franklin Pierce Tuesday night at the Volpe Gym.
Using a tenacious press, Merrimack forced 19 Raven turnovers and
scored a remarkable 28 first-half points off the visitors’
miscues, taking a 43-19 lead into the locker room at halftime.
Dee Mency (Hagerstown, MD) led the way with 13
first-half points and four rebounds, while Aaron Strothers
(Wareham, MA) added four points and five first-half
boards. The Warriors revamped their starting lineup, inserting
Roland Davis (Deer Park, NY), and the change
worked as the hosts grabbed an early 19-5 lead capped off with a
three from Craig Woehnker (Colts Neck, NJ).
Merrimack cruised in the second half, outscoring the Ravens
43-28.
Darren Duncan (Briarwood, NY) led all players
with 19 points and added five steals and four assists in just 31
minutes. Mency finished with 18 points, seven boards, five assists
and four steals in 25 minutes. Wayne Mack (Paterson,
NJ) added nine, while Strothers, Davis, and Woehnker each
added eight. All ten Warriors who played scored.
Franklin Pierce committed 31 turnovers, with the Warriors getting
45 points off the mistakes. The Warriors controlled the paint,
outrebounding the Ravens 38-34 and outscoring them 36-26 down
low.
Rimas Varanauskas, who scored 35 points against the Warriors
earlier this season, managed just two points in 13 minutes before
fouling out.
Merrimack (16-7, 12-6 NE-10) begins a two-game road trip at Pace
University on Saturday at 1:30 p.m. The Warriors defeated the
Setters 90-62 at the Volpe Gym on January 25.