BOSTON – Suffolk men's basketball overcame a 14-point, second-half deficit, took the lead, but could not hang onto it as last second free throws from Wentworth clinched a 64-63 Commonwealth Coast Conference (CCC) victory Wednesday night at Tansey Gymnasium.
THE BASICS
SCORE: Suffolk 63 | Wentworth 64
RECORDS: Suffolk (12-5, 7-4 CCC) | Wentworth (7-11, 4-8 CCC)
HOW IT HAPPENED
Suffolk's scoring struggled early one, which allowed the Leopards to build a 24-10 lead at the midway point. The Rams had to play catchup and pulled within six with 3:11 to go before half time. Neither team would put up any more points in the three remaining minutes of the first frame to keep the score the same, 33-27 Wentworth as the teams headed into half time.
Nate Hale sank a triple on the blue-and-gold's first possession of the second stanza to restore a one-possession game. See-saw action followed that let the Leopards remain in front by four less than four minutes into the second half.
Another scoring lull hit Suffolk and the Rams found themselves down 14, 49-35, at the 13:49 minute mark.
The Rams have made a habit of keeping their fans on the edge of the seats as the game came down the wire and this CCC clash between Beantown rivals as no different. Hale made a lay-up to jump start nine unanswered points that trimmed the distance down to five with more than enough time left on the clock, 10:57 to be exact.
After Wentworth scored four straight points another Rams run came. This time in the form of 10-0 spurt that was capped off by a trey from Hale. That bucket from behind-the-arc put Suffolk in front for the first time on the night, 54-53 with 6:50 to go in regulation.
The lead would swap back-and-forth before Suffolk was tested multiple times at the free throw line. Thankfully, the Rams took care of business at the charity stripe, going 6-for-6 over the next two minutes to hold onto a five-point edge. Aidan Sullivan connected on all four of his freebies in that stretch, while Keenan Robertson put away his two free throws.
Wentworth would not roll over without a fight and the Leopards charged back with five consecutive points of their out to even matters at 60-all with less than three minutes to play.
Out of a Suffolk 30-second timeout, the Rams had a costly turnover. Luckily, Wentworth did the same thing when it was their turn with the ball. That miscue by the host turned into a trip to the free throw line for Hale. The guard hit the first, missed the second, which allowed Tyler Stewart to score the go-ahead lay-up for WIT at the 1:13 minute mark.
Hale righted his wrong with 18 seconds to go as he made both free throws on his next visit to the foul line to give the Rams the go ahead, 63-62.
Wentworth would have another chance to grab the game. Similar to Suffolk, the chance would come at the line and Trey Carrier's composure paid off into a pair of points that flipped the script for the Leopards, 64-63.
Suffolk had five seconds to make its move and Sullivan took the ball full court for a lay-up, but the junior's shot was just short at the final buzzer.
STATISTICALLY SPEAKING
- Hale finished with 24 points behind a 9-for-15 showing from the field and 3-for-5 performance from downtown. He added four boards and three assists to his stat line.
- Robertson was the only other Ram in double figures with 13 points on a 3-for-4 showing from the floor and perfect performance, 6-for-6, at the line. The rookie was the verge of a double-double effort with nine rebounds to go along with two steals and one handout.
- Sullivan supplied nine points, six caroms, five dimes and two takeaways.
- William Rowe registered eight points, three boards and one assist.
- Suffolk shot 41.5 percent (22-53) from the field, 29.4 percent (5-17) from 3-point range and 87.5 percent (14-16) from the line.
- The Rams held a slim edge in rebounds, 33-31.
NOTEWORTHY
- Suffolk and Wentworth renewed a rivalry, meeting for the first time since Nov. 23, 1999.
POST-GAME PIC
WHAT'S NEXT?
Suffolk opens a four-game homestand Saturday, Feb. 5 against Salve Regina at 3 p.m.