SPRINGFIELD, Mass.—First-year Joey Flannery (Acton, Mass.) scored a game-high 21 points, including the go-ahead hoop with 1:06 left to go, helping visiting Babson College hold off Springfield College, 67-61, in New England Women's and Men's Athletic Conference (NEWMAC) men's basketball action on Wednesday night at Blake Arena.

Babson, which has won four straight games and seven of its last eight overall, clinched a spot in the upcoming NEWMAC Tournament and is now 17-5 overall and 8-3 in the league. Springfield, which had won five of its last six games, drops to 16-6 on the year and 7-4 in conference play.

First-year Sam Bohmiller (Franklin, Mass.) had 11 points on 3-of-4 shooting from three-point range for the Beavers, which are ranked fourth in the NCAA regional rankings, which were released earlier in the day. Junior David Mack (Holden, Mass.) added nine points and tied for game-high honors with nine rebounds, while classmate John Wickey (Manchester, N.H.) chipped in with nine points and seven boards.

Junior Nick Sinkiewicz (Cranston, R.I.) led the Pride, which are currently ranked seventh in the region, with 16 points, going 4-of-7 from beyond the arc. Seniors Robbie Burke (Cheshire, Mass.) and Sean Martin (Rindge, N.H.) contributed 14 and 13 points, respectively.

Babson trailed only once in the first half and opened up a 30-20 lead following a Bohmiller three-pointer with 5:10 to go. Springfield scored six straight points to get within four, but Flannery, who scored 17 of his points before halftime, started an 11-2 run to close the half with a triple, helping the Beavers go up 41-28 at the break.

Burke opened the second half with a layup for the Pride, but back-to-back hoops from senior Matt Palazini (Franklin, Mass.) and Mack gave the Green and White its biggest lead of the game at 45-30 with 16:52 left in the game. Springfield, sparked by 10 points from Sinkiewicz, went on a 21-6 run and tied the game at 51-51 with 7:28 to go after consecutive hoops by senior Tim Swenson (Millbury, Mass.).

The teams exchanged the lead five times over the next four minutes and had three ties with the final one coming on a layup by Burke to make it 61-61 with 2:21 remaining. Following empty possessions from both teams, Flannery hit a runner  off the glass with 1:06 to go to make it 63-61, and Babson got a pair of stops before Wickey nailed two free throws with 12 seconds left to make it a four-point game.

Palazini took his second charge of the final minute on the ensuing possession and Bohmiller knocked down two free throws with seven seconds to go for the final margin.

The Beavers shot 45.1 percent (23-for-51) on the night and held a 33-25 edge on the glass. The Pride finished the night shooting 48.0 percent (24-for-50).

Both teams return to action on Saturday as Babson hosts Clark in its final regular-season home game at 1 p.m., while Springfield welcomes Emerson to Blake Arena at 7 p.m.

GAME NOTES: The Beavers now 15-37 all-time against Springfield, but have split the series over the last three seasons…Babson's 17 victories are the most since the 2003-04 team won 21 games…The Beavers are now 14-0 this season when leading at halftime and 5-2 in games decided by six points or less…Babson has won 16 consecutive games when holding its opponents under 65 points.