Robertson’s Four-Point Play Ships Men’s Basketball by WNE, 65-64

SPRINGFIELD, Mass. – Down three with less than 30 seconds remaining, Keenan Robertson put on his hero cape swished a triple from 30-feet out, drew a foul and sunk a freebie to give Suffolk men's basketball a 65-64 lead over Western New England it did not let go of at the final buzzer Tuesday night at the Anthony S. Caprio Alumni Healthful Living Center.  

THE BASICS
SCORE: Suffolk 65 | Western New England 64
RECORDS: Suffolk (15-7, 11-4 CNE) | Western New England (16-6, 12-3 CNE)  

HOW IT HAPPENED
The scored leveled four times before four quick lead exchanges that landed in Western New England's favor, 14-12 with eight minutes off the clock in the first half. 

The Golden Bears went on an 8-3 run to grab a seven-point advantage and force Suffolk to play catch-up the rest of the opening stanza.  

For every response the Rams had, WNE had an answer and managed to lengthen its lead to as many as eight, 33-25, with 2:28 to go before halftime. 

Suffolk managed to score the final five points of the first frame to trim the deficit down to three, 33-30, as the teams headed to the locker room.  

Back-to-back treys by Robertson gave Suffolk the edge, 38-35, early in the second stanza.  

Matters would even three times and the lead flipped four times with the last in WNE's favor, 62-61, when Jake Harrison turned a trip to the charity stripe into two points with 4:14 remaining in regulation. 

The Rams offense was unable to connect for over a five minute span, while the Golden Bears padded its lead to three, 64-61, at the 3:04 mark.  

That score held until the final 26 seconds when Suffolk gained possession for a last try. The Rams worked the ball around the perimeter before Robertson pulled the trigger and connected from near NBA range. Nate Kasper was whistled for the foul and Suffolk's senior captain did not let the pressure show at the line as he made the game-winning shot.  

STATISTICALLY SPEAKING

• Robertson registered a game-high 27 points behind a 9-for-17 showing from the floor that included a 3-for-5 effort from 3-point land and a 6-for-9 effort at the foul line. He added three assists, three boards and one steal. 
• Danny Yardemian provided 12 points, seven caroms, four takeaways and three helpers. 
• Nick Verdile supplied 11 points on a 4-for-8 performance from the floor that included a 3-for-6 effort from behind-the-arc. 
• Suffolk shot 46.2 percent (24-52) from the field as a team, 44.4 percent (8-18) from downtown and 45.0 percent (9-20) at the foul line. 
• The Golden Bears out rebounded the Rams, 38-28. 
• Suffolk turned WNE's 11 turnovers into 18 points.  

NOTEWORTHY

• Suffolk has now won three games in a row against Western New England. 
• The Rams are now 12-19 all-time against WNE. 
• In Springfield, the Rams are 6-10 against WNE. 
• The blue-and-gold is 5-5 versus WNE under Jeff Juron's guidance. 
• It is the first time dating back to the 2004-05 season that Suffolk has defeated WNE in three consecutive contests.   

WHAT'S NEXT?
Suffolk is back in action this Saturday, Feb. 15 when it welcomes Wentworth to Larry E. and Michael S. Smith Court for a 3:00 p.m. contest.