BOSTON, Mass. – Senior Ric Castillo (Methuen, Mass.) scored with 46.5 seconds left to give the University of New England men's basketball team a 73-72 lead and the Nor'Easters held on to defeat Wentworth Institute of Technology, 74-72, in Commonwealth Coast Conference action Saturday afternoon.

With the win the Nor'Easters improve to 7-18 overall while the Leopards fall to 9-15. Both teams finish CCC play with identical 6-12 marks, however, UNE grabs the No. 8 seed in the upcoming CCC Tournament, which begins Monday, based on winning the head-to-head tiebreaker.

INSIDE THE BOX SCORE:

LEADING SCORERS:  Trey Carrier, 9; Kyle Henseler, 14; Jack Connell, 12
LEADING REBOUNDERS:  Tyler Stewart, 12; Carrier, 9
ASSIST LEADERS:  Stewart, 4; Sam Goy, 3

HOW IT HAPPENED:

• After Wentworth scored the first three points of the contest, UNE took an 8-3 lead after a senior Alex Kravchuk (Mansfield, Conn.) three pointer. Wentworth countered with a three from senior Trey Carrier (Wilton, N.H.) and eventually took a 16-13 lead on one of two free throws by freshman Tyler Stewart (East Taunton, Mass.).
• The Black & Gold led 19-15 with 7:06 left in the half after junior Tommy Dooling (Mansfield, Mass.) drained a three. The Nor'Easters countered with a 10-0 run, taking a 25-19 lead when Kravchuk hit a three with 4:22 left. Wentworth chipped away and brought the lead down to two at the half when senior Kyle Henseler (Coventry, R.I.) hit two free throws with one second left in the half.
• Wentworth regained the lead to start the second half when freshman Jack Connell (Walpole, Mass.) hit a three. The Leopards built their lead to five when sophomore Sam Goy (Derry, N.H.) grabbed a defensive rebound and fed Carrier in transition, making it 40-35 with 14:26 left. Kravchuk hit two free throws which started a 6-0 spurt and gave the Nor'Easters a 41-40 lead after a layup from senior Mark Rella (Dedham, Mass.). Using a 6-0 spurt of their own, the Leopards regained the lead when Stewart converted a three-point play with 11:46 left and increased their lead to 61-54 when Goy hit a three with 6:12 left.
• Two free throws from Goy put the Black & Gold back up by seven (63-56) with 5:07 left and on two occasions Kravchuk hit two free throws to cut the lead to three, including with 3:45 left (65-62). Connell hit two free throws and, with 2:57 left, Carrier drained a three putting Wentworth ahead, 70-62. The Nor'Easters used a 9-0 run and took a 71-70 lead when Kravchuk converted a three-point play with 1:32 left. Connell followed with a layup, putting the hosts ahead by one with 67 ticks left.
• After a missed three pointer, graduate student Avery DeBrito (New Bedford, Mass.) grabbed the offensive rebound and fed Castillo underneath for the sixth lead change of the contest. On its next possession, Wentworth turned the ball over with 22.2 seconds left. Senior Anthony Senesombath (Newmarket, N.H.) was fouled with 17.5 seconds left and missed both, giving the Black & Gold possession, with a chance to win. With four seconds left, Henseler's attempt was off the mark and Castillo was fouled with 0.4 seconds left. After missing the first, he hit the second. The Leopards had one last chance on a hail Mary, however, turned the ball over.
• Kravchuk led all scorers with 30 points, which included going 15-for-17 from the free throw line. DeBrito finished with 11 points, eight rebounds, four assists, and two steals.
• Carrier led the Leopards with 22 points on 9-of-14 shooting to go along with nine rebounds. Henseler (14) and Connell (12) were also in double figures. Stewart had a game and career-high 12 rebounds, while junior Conor Rubenskas (Bridgewater, Mass.) had five blocked shots to go along with seven points and six rebounds. Wentworth had a 45-35 rebounding advantage.

SERIES NOTES:

• Today was the 43rd all-time meeting between the two teams. Wentworth leads the all-time series 28-15. UNE has won the last three meetings.

NEXT UP:

• The two teams will meet on Monday in an opening round game of the 2022 CCC Men's Basketball Tournament in Biddeford, Maine. Game time is 7:00 p.m.

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