Box Score
GORHAM, Maine – Junior guard Nyheem Sanders (Pawtucket, RI/St. Andrew's) drained a three-pointer with 36 seconds left, and three players combined to make four of six free throws down the stretch as the Rhode Island College (RIC) Anchormen defeated the University of Southern Maine Huskies 71-66 in a Little East Conference matchup at Hill Gym on Tuesday night.
With the win, RIC improves to 11-2 overall and 3-1 in the conference. USM drops to 8-6 overall and 3-1 in the LEC.
Southern Maine senior Alex Kee (Bath, Maine/Morse) hit a baseline jumper off an inbounds pass to put the Huskies up 64-62 with 3:40 left to play. RIC senior Tahrike Carter (Brooklyn, NY/Benjamin Benneker) was then fouled and made both of his free throws to tie the game at 64 with 1:08 remaining. Senior Ethan Gaye (Providence, RI/North Kingstown) came up with a steal on the Huskies' next possession, and Carter dished it to Sanders who hit a three that put the Anchormen up 67-64 with 36 left on the clock.
Southern Maine junior Conor Sullivan (Scarborough, Maine) hit a 15-foot jumper to pull the Huskies within one, 67-66, with 19 seconds left, but the Huskies were forced to foul, and free throws and a key offensive rebound by senior Steven Roberts (New Haven, Conn./Hillhouse) sealed the deal for the Anchormen.
Roberts led RIC with 13 points and nine rebounds, including seven offensive boards. Sophomore Alex Cruz (East Hartford, Conn.) had 12 points, six rebounds, and two steals, and Carter and junior Michael Palumbo (Providence, RI/Classical) each had 11 points. Sanders finished with nine points, and sophomore Chris Burton (New Rochelle, NY) had nine points and a game-high 11 rebounds.
Down by 12, 37-25, with a just over two minutes left to play in the first half, the Huskies went on a 9-1 run to cut the Anchormen lead to four, 38-34, heading into the break.
USM then scored three straight points to begin the second half to take its first lead of the game, 39-38. RIC built its lead back up to nine, 52-43, with 12:39 remaining, but Southern Maine would go on an 11-0 run over the next three minutes to take a 54-52 lead at the 8:26 mark. The run was highlighted by four points from Kee and Sullivan, and three points from junior James Odneal (Pontiac, MI/Bottineau). Each teams' lead wouldn't exceed more than two points over the next eight minutes until Sanders hit his three-pointer.
Sullivan led the way for Southern Maine with a game-high 20 points and a team-high 10 rebounds. Odneal finished with 19 points, eight rebounds, two steals, and one assist, and Kee added eight points and three steals. Freshman Cole Libby (Buxton, ME/Bonny Eagle) chipped in with seven points, four assists, three rebounds, and two steals off the bench, and senior Sean Bergeron (Kennebunk, Maine) had a game-high four steals.
Southern Maine travels to UMass Dartmouth on Saturday (3:00 p.m.) in a Little East Conference game. Rhode Island College also remains in LEC action hosting Keene State College on Saturday (3:00 p.m.).
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