BRISTOL, R.I. – The Roger Williams University Men's Basketball team picked up its third straight win with a 76-69 win over Endicott College Saturday afternoon.

The Hawks jump up to second place in the Commonwealth Coast Conference, improving to 7-4 in the conference (11-7 overall) and sitting two games behind local rival Salve Regina. Endicott drops into a tie for third in the conference with a record of 11-6 overall and 6-4 in the CCC.

The Hawks opened the game on a 7-0 run before Endicott tied the game at nine apiece. This would become a theme over the course of the half, with the Hawks taking a sizeable lead before a Gull run to come back. Matt Clifford (Norwood, Mass.) laid in a basket at the 10:12 mark in the first half to give RWU a nine-point lead (27-18), their largest at that point.

Yet Endicott continued to chip away, closing the half on an 11-4 run over the final five minutes to pull within one into the break (33-34).

Andre Makris (Southbury, Conn.) led off the second half with a jumper to give Endicott its first lead of the game. The Gulls would build their advantage to nine, with Erik Callo (Southington, Conn.) knocking down a shot to make it 48-39.

EC held on to the lead until a three-point play by Pat Flanagan (Somerville, Mass.) helped the Hawks go back on top 51-50 with 10:31 to play. The game would go back and forth over the next six minutes before a James LeCardi (Fair Haven, N.J.) three-pointer tied the game at 60 with just over four minutes to play.

Flanagan would hit a shot on the following Hawk possession to give RWU a lead that the team would hold on to over the rest of the game. Endicott made one last gasp in the final minute, cutting a nine-point deficit to four (69-73) with 23 seconds to play. Yet the Gulls would not score again, giving RWU the win.

Flanagan finished with a game-high 23 points with seven rebounds. Mike Engemann (Red Bank, N.J.) added 17 points and seven rebounds. Ryan Palumbo (Warwick, R.I.) had his best game of the year with ten points, eight assists, six boards, and a career-high five steals, all career-bests.

Five Gulls scored in double figures for Endicott, including a pair of double-doubles. Makris finished with 16 points and 11 rebounds, and Callo had ten points and 12 boards. Lachlan Magee (Melbourne, Australia) added 13 points and eight rebounds, while John Henault (Lunenburg, Mass.) and Tyler Burkhart (Cromwell, Conn.) each scored 11.

On Tuesday, Roger Williams travels to Gordon while Endicott will be Wentworth.