Men’s Basketball Completes Comeback Against Salve Regina, 72-67

BOSTON – Suffolk men's basketball climbed out of a double figure deficit to take down Commonwealth Coast Conference foe Salve Regina, 72-67, Tuesday night at Larry E. and Michael S. Smith Court.  

THE BASICS
SCORE: Suffolk 72 | Salve Regina 62
RECORDS: Suffolk (8-6, 3-4 CCC) | Salve Regina (4-10, 2-5 CCC)  

HOW IT HAPPENED
After a back-and-forth opening that saw three lead changes, Suffolk took a 13-9 cushion. The Seahawks surged back with 10 unanswered points to put the Rams in six-point hole, 19-13, at the 11:47 mark.  

For every comeback attempt the Rams tried to put together Salve Regina responded with a hoop of its own to hold onto the advantage at the half, 37-28.  

Less than four minutes out of the locker room, sharp shooting from downtown helped Suffolk get back into it as back-to-back triples from Aidan Sullivan and Keenan Robertson put the host back within three, 43-40. 

Another quick spurt from Salve Regina, a 7-2 run to be extra, restored an eight-point cushion for the visitors, 50-42, with 15:11 remaining in regulation. 

Buckets in the paint, a tip-in from Jake Gomez and a lay-up from Cole LeVangie, was followed by a monster hoop from Sullivan. The floor general sunk a pull-up top-of-the key trey in transition. Not only did he connect on the long ball, but was fouled in the process and took care of business at the charity stripe to knot things at 50-all at the 14:01 mark. 

After Mikey Spencer converted a layup, LeVangie joined the shooting show with a 3-pointer of his own to push the host in front.  

From there, the lead would change six times. The last switch came with 7:35 on the clock when Sullivan made his fifth basketball from behind-the-arc of the night to give the blue-and-gold a 62-60 edge.  

John Gates came up big for the Rams when he sunk back-to-back three's, including one in transition, to give Suffolk its largest lead of the night, a 68-62 advantage, with 4:06 on the clock.  

Five straight Salve Regina points made things interesting as it trimmed the distanced down to one with 2:49 left to play.  

Robertson recorded a lay-up to regain a multi-point lead for the host and Sullivan buried a pair of free throws to extend matters to 72-62 with 30 seconds to go.  

The Seahawks last ditch efforts were off target and Suffolk managed to go on and preserve its conference triumph. 

STATISTICALLY SPEAKING

• Five players produced double figures for Suffolk. 
• Sullivan's 18 points led the Rams offensively. The senior shot 5-for-8 from 3-point range. He added eight assists and four steals. 
• Robertson registered 15 points, seven caroms, two dimes and one takeaway. 
• Rowe recorded a 12-point, 12-rebound double-double with one swat. 
• LeVangie notched 12 points, four rebounds, two helpers and two steals. 
• Gates tallied 11 points off the bench with four handouts, two caroms and two steals. 
• Jake Gomez grabbed eight rebounds to go along with two points. 
• Spencer's game-high 28 points paced Salve Regina's offense that received 11 points from reserve Clay Brochu. 
• The Seahawks did not miss any free throws (8-8). 
• Suffolk outrebounded Salve Regina, 47-37. 
• 45.2 percent (33-72) of the Rams scoring came from 3-point distance. 
• The Rams converted in transition, scoring a dozen points on the fast break.  

NOTEWORTHY

• Suffolk snapped a three-game skid against Salve Regina to move to 12-14 in the all-time series. 
• The Rams defeated the Seahawks for the first time since March 6, 2021. 
• At home, Suffolk moved to 9-5 against SRU. 
• Suffolk is 2-6 against Salve Regina under Jeff Juron's leadership. 
• Rowe registered his sixth collegiate double-double, first of the season and first since Jan. 6, 2022. 
• Gomez matched a career-high eight rebounds.  

POST-GAME PIC
 

WHAT'S NEXT?
Suffolk heads to Gordon Saturday, Jan. 14 for a 3:00 p.m. CCC clash.