Salve Regina defeats Babson, 78-70

NEWPORT, R.I. (November 13, 2021) - Salve Regina University senior Mikey Spencer (Abington, Mass.) led all players with 28 points and the Seahawks defeated the visiting Beavers of Babson College, 78-70, in non-league men's basketball action at the Rodgers Recreation Center on Saturday afternoon.

Seahawks win for only the third time in 13 all-time meetings with the Beavers, and only the second time ever in Newport (1986). The last Seahawk victory in the series came 21 years ago (80-73) in Wellesley, Mass. The last matchup had been in 2019 with the Beavers beating the Seahawks, 92-68, at home; that was two years after Babson had won the 2017 NCAA Divison III Men's Basketball Championship.

Salve Regina (1-2) shot slightly better than Babson (3-1) from the floor, 43.1 percent to 41.3 percent, but the Seahawks made the biggest difference at the free throw line. Salve Regina made 24 of 29 (82.8 percent) from the charity stripe while Babson could convert only half of its free opportunities (10 of 20).

The Seahawks led (or were tied) for all but 20 seconds of the contest. Spencer scored the first basket on a short-range jumper. Babson graduate student Mitchell Kirsch (Atkinson, N.H.) answered with the game's first trey. Spencer erased that deficit on the next possession. Kirsch's second 3-pointer tied the game at eight-all. The teams would be tied once more when senior Colin Bradanese (Billerica, Mass.) got a tip-in layup to go to 16-16 in the first half.

Freshman Declan Walmsley (Franklin, Mass.) and sophomore Clay Brochu (North Kingstown, R.I.) both hit 3-pointers to start the Seahawks on a 10-2 run. Graduate students Kevin Kelly (Valhalla, N.Y.) and Cameron Collins (Montville, Conn.) both had baskets in the run.

The Seahawks doubled their four-point lead at the break (35-31) with the first four points of the second half coming from Collins on a floating jumper in the paint and two free throws. Salve Regina had its biggest lead (10 points, 63-53 at 4:56 in second) after Kelly converted an old-fashioned three-point play. Kelly finished 9-of-9 from the free-throw line and totalled 17 points while adding a game-high 11 rebounds for a double-double.

Collins collected 17 points and eight boards to round out the top scorers for Salve Regina. Spencer had nine rebounds in the win.

Three Beavers reached double-figures in scoring led by freshman Nate Amado (Hanson, Mass.) with 20 points. Kirsch had three of his team's eight 3-pointers to finish with 16 points. Starting guard Rob Crouch (Jacksonville, Fla.) added a dozen points as Babson fell for the first time in 2021.

Spencer and Kelly will enter their next game (home versus Coast Guard on Tuesday, Nov. 16 @ 7 p.m.) with 990 and 985 career points, respectively. Babson returns home to host University of St. Joseph at Staake Gymnasium on Wednesday (7 p.m.).