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Salem State Defeats MIT Men’s Basketball, 75-65

Salem State College’s balanced attack put five players in double figures and the Vikings’ full-court press plagued MIT throughout the contest as the home team rallied past the Engineers, 75-65, despite another phenomenal effort from James M. “Jimmy” Bartolotta ’09, who played his third consecutive game with at least 30 points on Tuesday night.

Bartolotta closed with 34 points on 13-of-23 shooting to pace an MIT attack that held a 50-42 lead with 11 minutes left in regulation. Forcing the Engineers to commit a season-high 31 turnovers, the Vikings scored 22 points in the second half on the takeaways en route to the dominating finish.

For the seventh straight game, MIT fell behind early and trailed 13-5 six minutes into the action. Consecutive three’s by Erik S. Zuk ’11, Willard J. “Billy” Johnson ’09, and Bartolotta pushed the Engineers in front by one. After trading baskets with Salem over the next five minutes, MIT gradually pulled ahead. A Johnson free throw with 1:30 left in the first half provided MIT with its biggest lead of the game at 35-23. The Vikings scored the final five points of the half to close the deficit to seven at the break.

Salem State opened the second half with an 11-5 run that reduced MIT’s advantage to two. The Vikings turned up the pressure in the last 11 minutes of the game, outscoring MIT, 33-15, while ending the battle with 18 steals. The full-court press also hampered the Tech offense down the stretch as MIT shot 1-of-7 from beyond the arc despite shooting 45 percent in the first half.

—James Kramer, DAPER Staff

Franklin and Rubino Named ESPN The Magazine Academic All-Americans

MIT Football players Thomas J. Franklin ’09 and Alexander F. Rubino ’10 passed through a difficult and highly competitive selection process en route to ESPN The Magazine Academic All-America honors as recently announced by the College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA). The selections boosted the football program’s contingent to an Institute-best 27 accolades; MIT maintains its position as the all-time NCAA Division III leader with 151 honors since 1980.

As a four-year starter at tight end, Franklin developed into an outstanding blocker during his career and helped guide the Engineers to the ninth-best rushing attack in the nation this season. Franklin is a member of the National Society of Collegiate Scholars as well as Tau Beta Pi Engineering Honor Society. Set to graduate with a 5.0 grade point average in Aerospace Engineering, Franklin is a recipient of the Society of Flight Test Engineers Scholarship.

Rubino earned Academic All-America Second Team honors after a season in which he served as MIT’s most disruptive defender. Rubino paced the Engineers’ defensive corps with 47 solo tackles while ranking fifth among lineman in the New England Football Conference (NEFC) with 63 total stops. A Chemical Engineering major with a 5.0 grade point average, Rubino’s academic achievements include National Dean’s List, National Society of Collegiate Scholars, Tau Beta Pi Engineering Honor Society, and NEFC All-Academic.

—James Kramer, DAPER Staff