SPRINGFIELD, Mass. – Senior guard Brian Jones (Austin, TX) sank a free throw with 1:02 left in overtime for his only point of the game as the University of New England men's basketball team edged Western New England 70-69 Saturday afternoon (Jan. 21) at the Alumni Healthful Living Center.

This was only the second win in 15 outings for the Nor'easters who are now 2-6 in the Commonwealth Coast Conference (CCC). The Golden Bears drop to 5-10 overall and 2-7 in conference action.

Jones, who had three assists and three rebounds, made only one of two charity attempts before the Golden Bears couldn't convert a pair of shots in the final 34 seconds that rimmed in and out of the basket.

The first was a three-pointer by junior guard Ryan Mickiewicz (East Longmeadow, MA) that just missed, then a layup at the buzzer by junior forward Dennis Rinaldi (Harrison, NY) that appeared to go in before spinning out.

Senior forward Ryan Knotek (Saratoga Springs, NY) led three Nor'easters in double figures with 15 points before fouling out. Junior guard Charles Fenner III (Bronx, NY) provided a big spark by scoring 14 points with three steals coming off the bench. Senior guard Marcus Winn (Austin, TX) added 12 points.

UNE's reserves contributed to the victory by scoring 31 points and grabbing 16 rebounds. Freshman guard Jordan Ferreira (Nantucket, MA) helped out with eight points while junior center Nevin Lessard (Belgrade, ME) had six rebounds.

It was a close game throughout with the visitors taking a 33-32 lead at the break.

Western New England led for most of the second half taking its biggest margin at 58-50 following a pair of free throws by sophomore forward Daniel Minto (Harrison, NY) with 4:26 to play.

The Nor'easters used a 10-2 run down the stretch to tie the contest at 60-60 following a layup by Fenner with 24 seconds remaining.  Mickiewicz missed a jumper with a second left to force the extra session.

Senior guard Andre Shaw (New York, NY) fired in a game-high 19 points with three assists for Western New England. Minto compiled a double-double with 17 points and 17 rebounds (both career highs) with three steals. Rinaldi was the third player in double figures with 11 points.

UNE had the better shooting effort making 43.5% of the field-goal attempts compared to only 34.3% for Western New England. The Golden Bears had a commanding 51-33 rebounding cushion as junior center James Hock (Trumbull, CT) and sophomore forward Kevin Wilkes (Troy, NY) had six boards apiece.