Statistics

BOSTON -- Suffolk University fell behind by three midway through the 4th quarter but responded with 10 of the next 12 points and held on in the waning second to defeat the University of New England, 62-59, in the Commonwealth Coast Conference (CCC) regular-season finale on Saturday afternoon (Feb. 18) at Smith Court.

The teams will take a few days to regroup and then square off in Biddeford on Tuesday (7 p.m.) in the quarterfinals of the 2023 CCC Women's Basketball Championship. The Rams (13-12, 8-10 CCC) finished seventh in the league standings, while the Nor'easters (17-8, 13-5) emerged from a tiebreaker to claim the second seed for the tournament.

Suffolk turned a 51-48 deficit at the 5:25 mark into a 58-53 cushion with 2:17 to go, but weren't quite in the clear. A Faye Veilleux basket made it a one possession match with 1:52 remaining, and that score lasted until there were less than 30 seconds left when Keagan Dunbar added a free throw to make it 58-56.

While two at the line by Katie Kirsch upped the margin to four, Veilleux almost immediately countered with a three-point play to narrow the gap to 60-59. Only 1-of-2 freebies went down for the Rams on their next trip, but a UNE offensive foul gave the ball right back to the hosts, who again added one at the stripe. The Nor'easters had a look at to tie things at the buzzer, but couldn't connect.

Suffolk received 18 points, seven boards, five assists, and four steals from Maddie Stewart, and another 15 points with 10 rebounds out of Amanda DeAngelis. Kendall Jacques contributed 12 points, while Kirsch ended with eight points, 10 caroms, and five helpers.

The Rams controlled the glass to the tune of 53-37, which included 21 offensive rebounds. The hosts also had a 38-16 scoring lead in the paint.

Veilleux netted a game-high 20 points with seven rebounds for UNE. Dunbar supported with 13 points and five assists, and Kasey Oliver tallied nine points, six boards, and five assists. Gabby Soter tossed in eight points for the visitors, who outscored Suffolk by nine behind the arc (18-9) and by four at the free throw line (15-11).

The Rams opened with the first seven points of the contest but the Nor'easters bounced back with 23 of the next 28 to hold a double-digit lead early in the 2nd quarter. But with just one point during the remainder of the half, Suffolk was up five at the break (29-24). The spread reached nine in the latter stages of the 3rd before UNE began to chip away, and three-pointers by Kaitlyn Santos and Soter knotted the score at 44-all less than one minute into the 4th frame.