Men’s Basketball Edges Roger Williams 72-70

BRISTOL, R.I. – The Endicott men's basketball team secured a 72-70 conference victory against Roger Williams on Saturday evening at the Recreation Center Gymnasium.

Tied 70-70 with three seconds to play in the game, the Hawks fouled Endicott sophomore guard Keith Brown (Pelham, N.H.) which gave the Gulls a chance to clinch the win at the free throw line. The No. 11 leading scorer in all of NCAA Division III didn't disappoint as Brown buried both of his attempts from the charity stripe to grab a late 72-70 advantage.

Moments later, Brown also came up huge on the defensive when he blocked a game-winning three-point field goal attempt as time expired to ensure the victory.

Brown finished the game with 13 points, 11 rebounds, six assists, two blocks and one steal. It marks his first double-double of the season. Meanwhile, Matt McDevitt (Cumberland, Maine) added a team-high 18 points and Nick Thibeault (Gorham, Maine) had eight points, eight rebounds, one assist and a block.

Fellow starters Joel Villa (Bronx, N.Y.) and Joe Shehadi (Dorset, Vt.) contributed 10 points and eight points, respectively.

BEYOND THE BOX SCORE

• Endicott led by seven points (70-63) with 2:26 remaining in the contest after a made three-pointer from Brown, but Roger Williams put together a 7-0 run down the stretch to even the score at 70-70 before Brown's free throws and block to seal it.
• The Gulls are 29-8 against Roger Williams in the all-time series.
• Endicott improved to 9-3 on the road this season with today's victory.
• The Gulls led for 33:21 in the matchup and only trailed by no more than two points the entire game (10-8, 14:12 1st half | 14-12, 8:20 1st half).

FOR THE FOES

• Conor O'Brien (Sharon, Mass.) paced all scorers with 21 points (8-for-15 FG, 2-for-7 3PT, 3-for-5 FT) to go along with seven boards and one block.
• Austin Coene (Tyngsborough, Mass.) produced 17 points, six rebounds, an assist and a steal.
• Nick Marini (Loudonville, N.Y.) had 10 points and three rebounds, while Jaylen Jennings (Norwalk, Conn.) compiled 10 points and hauled in three rebounds.

WHAT'S NEXT

No. 3 seed Endicott (17-8, 12-6 CCC) will host No. 6 seed Wentworth on Tuesday, February 20 in the Commonwealth Coast Conference (CCC) Tournament quarterfinals at 5:30 PM. No. 4 Roger Williams (17-8, 11-7 CCC) welcomes No. 5 University of New England to its campus next Tuesday at 7:30 PM. 

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(Photo Credit - David Le '10