Men's Basketball 12/10/2013 9:49:00 PM

UMass-Dartmouth escapes with win over Men’s Basketball

Box Score BRISTOL, R.I. – The Roger Williams University had its second-half comeback attempt thwarted by the University of Massachusetts-Dartmouth Tuesday evening, as the Corsairs held off the Hawks late and escaped with a 80-76 win.

Roger Williams trailed by 12 points at halftime and was down by as many as 17 points in the second half. RWU managed to pull within two in the final minute but could not take the lead.

UMass-Dartmouth made things difficult for the Hawks in the first half. The Corsairs held RWU to only 29.6% shooting (8-27) in the period. Conversely, UMass-Dartmouth shot .583 (14-27) from the field while forcing ten Hawk turnovers.

In the second half, the Corsairs continued to pace the Hawks and maintain their advantage. Abi Akanni (Fitchburg, Mass.) gave UMD its largest lead of the contest with a trey at the 16:55 mark, putting the Corsairs up 41-24.

Despite the large deficit, Roger Williams slowly crept its way back in the game. Halfway through the half, the Hawks began to push the tempo, which led to transition baskets. Zac Campbell (Woodbridge, Conn.) was able to sandwich a pair of three pointers around a Trevor Fahmy (Bedford, N.H.) layup to bring RWU within three (49-52) after trailing by nine.

Chris Bardwell (North Andover, Mass.) made it a one-point game (58-59) on a tip-in, with Travis Fonseca (Bridgeport, Conn.) later tying the game at 61 on a free throw with four minutes left.

However, the Corsairs were able to build the lead back up to seven, with Tucker Bouchard (Kingston, Mass.) drilling a three with 1:49 to play to make it 69-62 UMD.

The Hawks began fouling with under a minute to play to force the Corsairs to hit free throws. UMass-Dartmouth would ultimately sink 11 of its final 12 attempts from the foul line, yet the Hawks continued to remain within striking distance.

Joseph Henry (Medway, Mass.) drilled a deep three to pull RWU within four (69-73) with 33 seconds left, while Josh McCourt (Lincoln, R.I.) buried a trey of his own to make it a 74-76 game with 18 seconds to go. However, Jake Laga (Northampton, Mass.) sunk his final six free throws in the final minute to hold off RWU's comeback bid and give UMD the win.

Bouchard finished with a game-high 19 points with seven rebounds and three steals. Wale Abraham (Lynn, Mass.) went for 15 points, eight boards, and five blocks. Laga added 16 points and six assists, while Ryan Walsh scoring 11 points.

Henry led RWU with 19 points along with three rebounds. Ryan Palumbo (Warwick, R.I.) finished with 15 points and five assists, while Josh Syska (Peabody, Mass.) finished with 11 points off the bench.

Roger Williams (1-7) will be back in action on January 2 at Brandeis, while UMass-Dartmouth (5-3) plays Geneva on December 30 in Miami at the 2013 adidas Holiday Slam.

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Players Mentioned

#42 Trevor Fahmy: C; 6' 8"; Sophomore

#15 Travis Fonseca: G; 5' 10"; Sophomore

#5 Joseph Henry: F; 6' 2"; Junior

#10 Josh McCourt: F; 6' 0"; Sophomore

#1 Ryan Palumbo: G; 5' 10"; Junior

#3 Josh Syska: F; 6' 5"; Freshman

#20 Zac Campbell: G; 6' 3"; Freshman

#22 Chris Bardwell: F; 6' 6"; Freshman

Players Mentioned

#42 Trevor Fahmy
: 6' 8"; Sophomore
: C

#15 Travis Fonseca
: 5' 10"; Sophomore
: G

#5 Joseph Henry
: 6' 2"; Junior
: F

#10 Josh McCourt
: 6' 0"; Sophomore
: F

#1 Ryan Palumbo
: 5' 10"; Junior
: G

#3 Josh Syska
: 6' 5"; Freshman
: F

#20 Zac Campbell
: 6' 3"; Freshman
: G

#22 Chris Bardwell
: 6' 6"; Freshman
: F