NEW LONDON, Conn. – The Connecticut College men's basketball team extended its winning streak to five games with a 94-77 victory over Hamilton College on Sunday afternoon in a NESCAC match-up at Luce Field House.

After celebrating their seniors prior to tip-off, the Camels shot 53 percent en route to their highest point total of the season. David Murray (Jackson Heights, N.Y.) and Elias Espinosa (Leonia, N.J.) led the charge on the offensive end with 24 and 23 points, respectively.

With the win, Conn secured a top-3 finish in the league standings and the right to host a quarterfinals game in the NESCAC Championship for the first time since 2002. The Camels improved to 7-1 in the conference standings and are currently tied for second place. The seven NESCAC wins are the most by the program since the league began championship play in 2000-01.

Conn's four seniors all got the starting nod and had a big part in the victory. Murray pulled down seven rebounds to go along with his game-high 24 points, and Jarron Flynn (Roslindale, Mass.) added a season-high 12 points and four boards. Billy Whelan (Hamilton, Mass.) went 3-for-3 from deep for nine points and tacked on three steals while Ben Rice (Hanson, Mass.) grabbed a team-high 11 rebounds.

The Camels led for the majority of the contest, taking the lead for good on a three-pointer by Whelan at the 17:23 mark. Later, Conn pushed the lead to double digits on a three-point play by Murray that made it 21-11 with 9:44 to go in the half.

Hamilton kept within striking distance thanks to an incredible effort on the offensive glass. The Continentals tied their season-high of 17 offensive rebounds in the first half alone, creating several extra possessions and a 12-5 edge in second-chance points. 

After Hamilton had cut the deficit to six with 2:09 left in the half, the Camels responded with a pair of threes to post a 39-29 lead at the break. The final trey came from Whelan at the halftime buzzer, the second straight game in which he's given Conn a boost going into the locker room.

In the second half, Conn extended the lead to 52-37 following a three-point play by Cam Schainfeld (Newton, Mass.) with 16:00 to go. The Camels then broke the game open with a 14-3 stretch to take their largest lead at 71-48 with 7:41 left on the clock.

Schainfeld netted all 13 of his points in the second half and shot 9-for-11 from the free throw line. He also finished with a season-high nine assists.  

Garret Keyhani led Hamilton (10-12 overall, 3-5 NESCAC) with 22 points and eight rebounds. Teja Singh also scored in double figures with 16 points.

Conn (17-5 overall, 7-1 NESCAC) will next play at Middlebury College on Friday, February 9 at 7:00 p.m.