Worcester, Mass. (December 6) -- Leading by as many as 22 points in the second half, the Assumption College men's basketball team picked up a 71-62 home win over Merrimack College on Saturday afternoon at Laska Gym.

The Hounds came out firing early and just 2:52 in held an 8-2 lead after a pair of threes from junior Tre Owens (Rota, Spain/Rota). Assumption made it a double-digit margin at 19-8 with 11:36 left in the opening half on a layup by sophomore Reilly Reid (Mississauga, Ontario/Lorne Park). Assumption led by as many as 14 points in the period at 26-12 after a three-point play by junior Julian Aiken (Randolph, N.J./Randolph) with 5:46 remaining.

After Merrimack briefly cut the lead to single digits at 30-22, junior Terrance Bobb-Jones (Wilmington, Del./Delcastle-Voc Tech) scored on a putback with 2:49 left. With the game back in single digits at 32-23, a putback basket by sophomore Kamali Bey (Springfield, Mass./Wilbraham & Monson Academy) and a fastbreak layup by Bobb-Jones sent the game into the break at 36-23 in favor of Assumption.

Bey led the Hounds with eight points in the half, along with seven points from Merrimack's Kyle Howes.

Assumption shot 38.5 percent from the field in the half while holding the Warriors to 31.8 percent from the floor and 0-for-7 from three-point land. The Hounds held a 26-17 advantage on the glass as well, including 11-2 on the offensive end.

In the second half, the Hounds knocked down 5-of-8 from three-point land, including an Aiken three from the left wing to make it 39-26 with 18:58 left. Later in the half, Reid knocked down a triple for the 51-37 lead, along with an Owens three with 6:53 on the clock to stretch the lead out to 20 at 61-41.

Assumption continued to lead 63-41 with under four minutes remaining before an 18-3 run over the next three minutes cut the lead down to just 66-59 with 50 seconds left. The Hounds knocked down five free throws, including four by junior Declan Soukup (Melbourne, Australia/Hallam Senior College), in the final minute to seal the home win. The Hounds have now won four straight in the series with the Warriors.

Owens led the Hounds with 15 points behind four three-pointers, while Bey added 10 points. Senior captain Jimmy Zenevitch (Methuen, Mass./Central Catholic) tied for the team lead in rebounding with seven boards while also adding nine points. Sophomore Jack Sullivan (Stony Point, N.Y./Albertus Magnus) also posted seven rebounds to go along with three assists.

Gelvis Solano led all scorers for Merrimack with 22 points, while Howes added 15 points.

Assumption held Merrimack to 35.6 percent shooting from the field and 17.6 percent from three while also holding a 49-40 rebounding advantage.

With the win, Assumption improves to 3-4 overall and 2-3 in the Northeast-10, while Merrimack has dropped five straight now and sits at 2-5 overall and 0-5 in league play.

Assumption is back in action on Sunday, December 7th as the Hounds host NYIT for the team's final non-conference game of the regular season.

For the latest on Assumption College Athletics, follow the Hounds via social media on Twitter, Facebook and YouTube. For more information, contact the Office of Athletic Communications at 508-767-7240.