BOSTON, Mass. – Sophomore guard Isiah Pringle (Queens, N.Y.) connected on nine of 15 shots – including going 8-for-14 from behind the arc – en route to a game-high 26 points as the Salve Regina men's basketball team maintained sole possession of first place in the Commonwealth Coast Conference with a 91-61 win over Wentworth.
Wentworth jumped out to an early 5-0 lead thanks to a layup from sophomore guard Derek Mayo (Casco, Maine) and a 3-pointer from junior guard Corey Therriault (Auburn, Maine). The Seahawks battled back to eventually tie the game at 7-all on a 3-pointer from graduate student Ryan Birrell Hope, R.I.). The tie was the first of six ties in the first half.
Pringle gave the Seahawks their first lead of the night (12-11) when he drained a shot from behind the arc with 14:22 left. The two teams would see the lead change hands eight more times in the first half, including when Birrell gave Salve Regina a 28-26 lead with a 3-pointer coming with 6:37 left.
After a Therriault basket tied the score at 28-all, Salve Regina went on a 9-0 run to take a 37-28 lead on a Pringle trifecta with 5:30 left. The Leopards scored the next five points to cut the lead to four, but the Seahawks held the Leopards without a field goal over the final 3:48 of the half and took a 46-34 lead into the locker room. Both teams shot over 55 percent from the floor over the first 20:00, with Salve Regina connecting on 61.5 percent of its shots and Wentworth 58.3 percent of its shots.
Pringle opened the second half with a 3-pointer to extend the lead to 15. A Mayo 3-pointer with 16:18 left cut the lead to 13 (53-40) but that would be as close as the Leopards would come as the Seahawks broke the game open with a 25-10 run.
In addition to his 26 points, Pringle had five assists, while Birrell went 10-for-16 from the floor, en route to a 25-point, five-rebound, seven-assist night. Junior guard William Smiley (Saunderstown, R.I.) and sophomore guard Jeff Bielefeld (Littleton, Mass.) also scored in double figures, going for 11 and 10, respectively. Bielefeld also had a game-high eight rebounds. The Seahawks shot 60 percent from the floor for the game and held a 32-22 rebounding advantage.
Therriault and Mayo each scored 12 for the Leopards, who saw their season high five-game win streak snapped. Senior guards Adam Dombrowski (Dunstable, Mass.) and Eric Prue (Auburn, Maine) each added nine points in the loss, while freshman guard Nico Donato (Glastonbury, Conn.) had eight points and six assists.
With the win Salve Regina improves to 14-8 overall and 12-3 in league play. The Seahawks host Gordon on Saturday. Wentworth falls to 14-7 (10-5) and is at Roger Williams on Saturday.
