BOSTON, Mass.—Gordon Men's Basketball got a big monkey off its back, beating Commonwealth Coast Conference foe Wentworth for the first time in three years, 70-61. Junior Jake Hart (Allendale, N.J.) nearly matched his career high with 15 points, 10 of which came in the first half, to help Gordon top the Leopards for the first time since the CCC playoffs during the 2013-14 season.

The two teams played a fairly even first half, with neither holding a lead of more than six. The Leopards led for the majority, as the three ball was kind to the hosts as it was in the first meeting. A string of three consecutive makes by Ben Kizel, Dan DeVaux and Sam Knollmeyer countered what Gordon was able to do on its offensive end to give the Leopards a 30-24 lead with five minutes to go.

The Fighting Scots held the Leopards to just one bucket the rest of the way and close the gap to a single point, 32-31, at the intermission.

Halftime did not cool off Hart, who hit his third three of the game just a 30 seconds into the second half to give Gordon its first lead since 10-9. Wentworth briefly retook the lead 35-34 just a minute later, but consecutive made lay ins for Garrisson Duvivier (Brockton, Mass.) and Sam Johnson (Chatham, Mass.) gave the Fighting Scots the lead for good.

After Knollmeyer hit a three with 16:46 remaining to pull back within one point, Gordon went on a methodical 10-point run over four minutes of gameplay to take command of the game. The Fighting Scots carried an 11-point lead with 8:03 when Wentworth made its final move. The Leopards held Gordon scoreless for over five minutes and chipped away to bring the game back to within three at 56-53.

However, Jaren Yang (San Francisco, Calif.) and Duvivier finished off a pair of buckets to stop the run, as a part of an 8-0 run back in favor of the Scots. Wentworth never got closer than eight points for the rest of regulation.

Gordon held Wentworth under 40 percent shooting after the Leopards shot at a blistering 65 percent in the first meeting in January. DeVaux led the scoring effort for the home team with 15 points, while Ganley added 13. Stephen Azums had another strong game against the Fighting Scots with 12 points and 11 rebounds in 27 minutes off the bench.

Duvivier shook off a quiet first half with 17 points in total to lead the Scots. Hart and Yang each put up 15 points and five assists in starting roles. Johnson continued his rebounding dominance with 15 more to his name to go with nine points and a block.

The Fighting Scots neared their season best in free throws with a 19-of-22 day and shot well from three for the second game in a row—six of 12.

Gordon is in control of its playoff destiny (10-6 CCC) with two games to go in the regular season, beginning with the home finale against the University of New England on Tuesday. The Fighting Scots (13-10) wrap up the season at Salve Regina a week from today.