Stephens Nets 25, Pulls Down 20 to Lead Men's Basketball Past Roger Williams, 93-79

Stephens Nets 25, Pulls Down 20 to Lead Men's Basketball Past Roger Williams, 93-79
MILTON, Mass. – Junior A.J. Stephens (Stamford, Conn.) turned in a 25-point, 20-rebound double-double effort, propelling Curry College to a 93-79 victory over visiting Roger Williams in Commonwealth Coast Conference (CCC) men’s basketball action Thursday night in Milton. The Colonels improve to 14-6 overall and 11-2 in league play, while the Hawks fall to 6-14 overall and 3-10 in the CCC.
 
Curry scored the first six points of the game, but Roger Williams responded with an 11-0 run. Junior Will Gerencer (Bowdoin, Maine) started the run with a made three-pointer and capped it off with a layup with 16:03 on the clock.
While the next 13 minutes were closely contested, the Colonels closed the first period on a 12-0 run to take a 47-40 edge at the break. Senior Sedale Jones (Pittsfield, Mass.) jump-started the run with a pair of converted free throws and sophomore Matthew Russell (South Portland, Maine) capped it off with a made layup.
 
Curry took a 16-point lead (69-53) after junior Lambros Papalambros (Quincy, Mass.) sank a pair from the charity stripe with 12:57 remaining in regulation. The Hawks chipped away at the lead and cut the deficit to seven (77-70) after Gerencer made a pair of free throws. That was as close as Roger Williams would come as the Colonels maintained a double-digit lead throughout the final 4:54 of regulation.
 
Stephens 25 points and 20 rebounds (10 offensive, 10 defensive) were both game highs. Sedale Jones added 23 points, while Papalambros chipped in with 12. Junior Carlos Ribeiro (Charlestown, Mass) and sophomore Antonio Jones (Boston, Mass.) scored 10 apiece.
 
The Hawks were led by Gerencer with a team-high 20 points. Senior Mike Engemann (Red Bank, N.J.) contributed 14, while classmate James LeCardi (Fair Haven, N.J.) recorded 13.
 
Both teams return to CCC action on Saturday at 3:00 p.m. with Curry visiting Salve Regina and Roger Williams hosting the University of New England.