Roger Williams Overtakes Men's Basketball

BRISTOL, R.I. – Mac Annus led a trio of student-athletes in double figures with 31 points as the Roger Williams University men's basketball team opened Conference of New England play with an 81-69 win over Wentworth Institute of Technology.

With the win the Hawks improve to 5-2, while the Leopards fall to 1-4.

HOW IT HAPPENED:

• Wentworth got off to a fast start, opening the game on a 10-0 run with Russell Dolabany scoring five of the Leopards' first 10 points. A jumper from Annus and a layup and two free throws from Finn Miller pulled Roger Williams to within four (10-6) before two free throws from Tyler Stewart and back-t0-back layups from Jack Connell pushed the lead back to 10 with 14:46 to play.
• Leading 16-9, the Black & Gold scored the next five points, taking a 21-9 lead with 12:00 left. A three from Ashton Leclerc started an 8-2 run that brought the hosts within six (23-17) after Sean Gogolin hit a three. A layup from Annus made it 29-23 with 7:18 left but Sean Racette and Stewart converted baskets to push Wentworth's lead back to double figures (33-23) with 4:51 to play.
• Miller knocked down a jumper and Annus hit a three, cutting the lead in half but a 6-2 run to end the half gave the Leopards a 39-30 lead at the break. Connell had four of Wentworth's six points down the stretch.
• The Hawks opened the second half on a 9-2 run, with all nine points coming from behind the arc, and pulled within a pair (41-39) with 17:55 to play. A 9-2 Wentworth run gave the Leopards a 50-40 lead after Connell hit one of two free throws. Annus followed with a three, which started an 11-2 run and brought Roger Williams within one (52-51) with 12:38 left. Stewart and Niko Rosich made back-to-back layups to put the Black & Gold ahead, 56-51. However, an 8-0 run, capped off by an Annus layup, gave the hosts their first lead (59-56) with 8:47 left.
• After Annus hit two free throws to make it a 64-58 game, Stewart converted a three-point play which brought Wentworth back to within three. After the Hawks increased their lead to 72-64 on an Annus three with 3:52 left, Connell knocked down a jumper 12 seconds later but that would be as close as the Leopards would get.
• Miller also scored in double figures for the Hawks, tallying 17 points on 7-for-9 shooting.
• Stewart led the Leopards with 25 points and notched a double-double as he also grabbed a game-high 14 rebounds. Connell chipped in with 21 points and six assists, while Dolabany added eight points. Wentworth had a 44-28 rebounding advantage.

ALL-TIME SERIES:

• Today was the 75th all-time meeting between the two teams.

NEXT UP:

• Wentworth hosts Western New England on Saturday, December 7, at 2:00 p.m.

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