nnBOSTON, MASS. – The Roger Williams men's basketball team defeated Wentworth 74-70 on Tuesday evening, coming back from four down with just 1:30 to play. The win moves the men to 12-5 overall and 7-3 in CNE action and gives them their fourth straight win.
Both teams came into the matchup rolling, having each won four games in a row. Something had to give on Tuesday evening, and it was Roger Williams who prevailed behind two late threes, first by
Ryan Higgins, followed by
Nate Lopes who sealed the victory.
With 1:30 to play,
Mac Annus was fouled on his drive to the hoop, sending him to the line for two free throws. The 86% free throw shooter knocked down both, narrowing the deficit to just two. A missed three pointer by Wentworth's Jack Connell gave the Hawks the ball with one minute remaining. It was
Ryan Higgins (Boston, Mass.) who answered the call once again, stepping in and nailing the go-ahead three pointer with just one minute to play. A Wentworth turnover would give the Hawks the ball back once again, this time with just 30 seconds remaining. On a feed from Phillip Sughrue (Winchester, Mass.),
Nate Lopes (Scituate, Mass.) nailed a corner three to expand the Hawk lead to four, putting the game out of reach altogether.
In the win, the Hawks shot 53% from three on 34 attempts, compared to the Leopards 23.5% from long distance. The Hawks racked up 25 assists in the victory as well, with Sughrue and
Finn Miller (Stamford, Conn.) combining for 15 in the winning effort.
Individually,
Mac Annus led the way for the Hawks pouring in 22 of his 26 points in the second half alone.
Ryan Higgins tallied 15 points and five rebounds to along with his late game heroics.
Ty Higgins and
Nate Lopes also recirded double figures adding 12 and 11 respectively, combing for 7-10 shooting from long distance.
Following the win, the men will return to Boston on Saturday, Feb. 1 to take on Suffolk. In their previous matchup this season, the Hawks handled the Rams easily in a 83-59 victory. They will look to expand their win streak in the matchup.
