Weston, Mass. – Regis College defeated Rivier University, 73-62, on Saturday, Feb. 3, in a Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) men's basketball game at Higgins Court.
Justin Evelyn (Uniondale, N.Y.) led the Pride with 14 points and seven assists, tying his single-game career high in assists. Russell Rau (Fitchburg, Mass.) trailed behind Evelyn with 13 points and 15 rebounds, his 13th double-double of the season. Jamir Harvey (Robbins, III.) and Cameron Wilkins (Taunton, Mass.) had 10 points apiece.
The Pride started strong, scoring the first seven points of the game, with Zakaria Latifi (Holliston, Mass.) creating the way for a three-pointer. With less than five minutes remaining in the first half, the Raiders closed the deficit and later tied the score at 28 thanks to a free throw from Joseph Melvin. Consecutive three-pointers from Rau helped advance the Pride to lead 45-30 at the half.
A layup by Harvey and an additional three by Rau would extend the Pride advantage to 51-37. The Raiders had a brief scoring run just over 12 minutes into the half after a foul on Wilkins gave an opportunity for Devin Owens to score two points. After an attempt to close the gap with a three-point shot from Owens, the Raiders could not hold on as Evelyn brought in the final two points for the Pride after a foul was called on O'Darius Cade.
Owens led the Raiders with 24 points, three assists, and seven rebounds. Nikolas Pignone finished with 12 points and four rebounds while also reaching the 1,000-point mark for his career.
Regis (10-11, 5-5 GNAC) is set to travel to Elms College on Wednesday, Feb. 7, at 5:00 p.m. Rivier (12-9, 4-7 GNAC) is scheduled to travel to Colby-Sawyer Feb. 7, with a start time of 7:30 p.m.