Balanced attack leads Roger Williams past Salve Regina, 72-61

NEWPORT, R.I. - Six different players had at least one 3-pointer for Roger Williams University men's basketball as the Hawks used a 22-5 first-half run to overtake Salve Regina University, 72-61, in Commonwealth Coast Conference (CCC) action at the Rodgers Recreation Center.

Salve Regina (3-6; 0-3 CCC) started the scoring with a 3-pointer from freshman guard Bryce Boggs (Hyde Park, Mass.), his only trey of the game. Senior Isiah Pringle (Queens, N.Y.) hit his first of a game-high five 3-pointers five minutes into the contest and the Seahawks had a four-point lead, 8-4.

Conor O'Brien (Sharon, Mass.) had the first 3-pointer for Roger Williams (4-5; 2-1 CCC), but the Hawks' 22-5 run started at the 12:28 mark on a 3-pointer from Andrew Wasik (Gainsville, Fla.). A layup from Josh McCourt (Lincoln, R.I.) at 12:06 gave the visitors their first lead of the game, and after another Pringle 3-pointer, McCourt's trey at 9:49 gave Roger Williams a 15-14 advantage and the Hawks never trailed or tied after that.

Josh Syska (Peabody, Mass.) hit his only 3-point attempt during the run. Alex Barry's (Brookfield, Conn.) free throws put the Hawks ahead, 29-16, with 4:23 remaining in the opening period.

The Seahawks finished the first half with a 10-2 run, highlighted by a Boggs' steal and layup at the buzzer.

Senior guard Ryan Palumbo (Warwick, R.I.) opened the second-half scoring with a three-point play that started a 16-6 run for the Hawks. Alex Puzone (North Haven, Conn.) made his one 3-pointer in the game during the run (17:03). Leonardo Atkinson (Nantucket, Mass.) had a fastbreak layup and two free throws, the latter of which gave the visitors their largest lead of the game, 47-32, at 12:59.

Two 3-pointers for Pringle and an Elisha Hodgson (Rindge, N.H.) layup and free throw contributed to a 9-0 run for Salve Regina, closing the gap to six points, 47-41, at 10:33.

Palumbo's 3-pointer gave the Hawks another double-digit advantage at 8:04 (53-43), and Wasik's second trey of the night increased the lead to 11 (58-47) at 4:02. Boggs, Adam Quinlan (East Walpole, Mass.), and Rodney Morton (Malden, Mass.) helped engineer a 9-2 run for Salve Regina to close within four points, 65-61, following a Boggs' layup at 1:09.

Following a timeout from Roger Williams, the Seahawks were able to force a turnover, but Boggs' drive to the basket was whistled for an offensive foul and Salve Regina could not make it a one-possession game. The Hawks made seven free throws in the final minute for the final score.

Atkinson was the leading scorer for the Hawks with 14 points, and shared game-high rebounding honors (seven) with two other teammates - Puzone and Trevor Fahmy (Bedford, N.H.). Wasik (12), Palumbo (11), and McCourt (10) rounded out the double-figure scoring efforts for Roger Williams.

Pringle finished with a game-high 17 points while Boggs and Quinlan had 15 and 14 points, respectively. Hodgson, Quinlan, and Chris O'Keefe (Lexington, Mass.) paced the Seahawks off the boards with six caroms apiece.

Both teams return to action on Friday, January 2, with the Seahawks traveling to Middlebury (Vt.) to face the Panthers at 3 p.m., and the Hawks hosting Brandeis at 6 p.m. in Bristol.