Posted: Jan 15, 2015
MILTON, Mass. - Visiting Roger Williams topped Curry College, 63-54, in a Commonwealth Coast Conference (CCC) men's basketball match-up Thursday night in Milton. The Hawks improved to 6-8 on the season and 4-3 in CCC action, while the Colonels fell to 2-12 overall and 0-7 in league play.
The first half was a see-saw affair, with no team establishing a lead larger than four points. The hosts led 27-26 with just over a minute remaining in the opening frame. The two teams then went on to trade baskets over the final 54 seconds, and entered the break with the Colonels holding a 29-28 advantage. Both squads shot well over the first 20 minutes – 46% for Curry and 44% for Roger Williams.
The Hawks took their first lead of the second half with a layup from senior Ryan Palumbo (Warwick, R.I.) at 13:19 that put his team ahead, 38-37. The visitors never trailed again, although the Colonels managed to close the gap to one on a number of occasions – the last coming at 6:10 when a layup by senior Antonio Jones (Dorchester, Mass.) made the score 49-48. Roger Williams went on to score 14 of the next 20 points to account for the 63-54 final.
Palumbo paced Roger Williams with team highs in points (14) and rebounds (8). Junior Josh McCourt (Lincoln, R.I.) contributed 13 points, while freshman Jaylen Jennings (Norwalk, Conn.) chipped in with 10 points.
Curry was led by Jones, who poured in a game-high 15 points. Sophomore James Pina (Warwick, R.I.) was the Colonels only other double-digit scorer with 13 points. Senior Matt Russell (South Portland, Maine) grabbed a team best eight rebounds.
Both teams resume conference play on the road on Saturday at 3:00 p.m., with Roger Williams visiting the University of New England and Curry traveling to Salve Regina.
