Men’s Basketball Secures Season-Opening Win Over Coast Guard, 92-78

BABSON PARK, Mass. – Five players provided double figures in scoring paced by a 25-point performance from Nate Hale in Suffolk men's basketball's 92-78 season-opening victory over Coast Guard at the Babson Invitational Saturday night at Staake Gymnasium.  

THE BASICS
SCORE: Suffolk 92 | Coast Guard 78
RECORDS: Suffolk (1-0) | Coast Guard (0-1)  

HOW IT HAPPENED
It was a slow start as neither team converted a bucket in close to two minutes. Coast Guard grabbed an early 5-2 lead that was quickly switched to Suffolk as Keenan Robertson's layup was followed up by a triple from Nate Hale. Those buckets jump started a 14-2 Rams run that make it a 16-7 game in favor of the blue-and-gold at with 11:16 left on the clock in the first frame.  

Less than a minute later, the Bears battled back behind a pair of freebies from Declan Rooney and a trey by Ben Yagey to make it a two-possession game, 18-12. Conor Creane took matters into his own hands as the senior sandwiched three-pointers around a CGA layup to keep Suffolk ahead, 23-14, with just over eight minutes to go before half time.   

A hoop-for-hoop affair ensued over the next three minutes before Creane converted a traditional three-point play to push the Rams ahead by double-digits, 32-21, at the 5:02 minute mark. 

Over the next two minutes a scoring draught hit the Rams hard and it allowed the Bears to chip away at the deficit and pull within six, 34-28. The long ball helped Suffolk once again as John Gates poured in a bucket from downtown and Hale followed up with a jumper inside the arc to restore the 11-point gap with 1:45 to go before the break, however, Coast Guard scored the final six points to send Suffolk into the locker room with just a five-point edge, 39-34. 

Suffolk stormed out of half with 10 unanswered points in less than two minutes to gain a 49-34 comfortable cushion. Hale held onto that advantage thanks to the hot hands of Hale as the graduate students traded hoops with the Bears himself to maintain the 15-point margin five minutes into the second stanza.  

The Rams kept the pressure on the Bears and went ahead by as many as 18, twice. The last came at 71-53 when Aidan Sullivan turned Creane's steal into a fast-break layup at the midway point of the second half.  

Coast Guard tested Suffolk down the stretch as it sliced matters down to seven, 75-68, with 7:18 left in regulation. The Rams responded with nine consecutive points to restore its comfortable cushion 84-68 with 3:53 to go.  

Despite the Bears best efforts, the blue-and-gold kept them at bay the rest of the way to preserver the game one victory.  

STATISTICALLY SPEAKING

• Hale logged a game-high 25 points behind a 4-for-12 performance from three-point range and a 5-for-6 showing at the charity stripe. He added seven boards, three steals and one swat to the Rams' winning effort. 
• William Rowe was on the verge of a double-double with 10 points and nine caroms. The senior shot 5-for-7 from the field and didn't miss (2-2) at the free throw line. 
• Creane provided a spark off the bench only missing one of the seven shots he took from the floor to finish with 15 points. He also chipped in three boards, one dime and one take away. 
• John Gates registered 13 points, five rebounds, two assists and one steal.  
• Cole LeVangie rounded out the Rams in double digits with 10 points to go along with four boards, four handouts and one steal. 
• Suffolk shot 46.1 percent (35-76) from the floor and 85.7 percent (12-14) at the line. 
• Coast Guard outrebounded the Rams, 44-43. 
• Nearly half of the Rams' offense came from close range with 42 points in the paint.

 NOTEWORTHY

• Suffolk rattled off its fifth straight season opener. 
• The Rams are now 25-29 since 1967-68 in game one of the year. 
• The blue-and-gold is now 5-2 in the season debut in the Jeff Juron era. 
• The Rams opened their campaign away from home for the third straight season. 
• Suffolk lifted the lid on its campaign at a neutral site for the 19th time, first since 2019-20. 
• The Rams move to 8-11 when playing on an impartial court in game one. 
• Suffolk and Coast Guard met for the first time since Jan. 17, 1990. 
• The Rams defeated the Bears for the second time overall, first since Jan. 28, 1989.
• Suffolk is now 2-2 all-time versus CGA. 
• LeVangie, Robertson, Kyle Phillips and Devin Dzikas made their collegiate debuts. 
• Gates matched a career-high two helpers. 
• Creane set a new personal-best in field goals made with six. 

POST-GAME PIC

WHAT'S NEXT?
Suffolk wraps up play at the Babson Invitational tomorrow, Sunday, Nov. 7 against the tournament host Beavers at 4 p.m.