BOSTON, Mass. – Senior guard Wendell Hinkson (Groton, Conn.) scored 23 points, grabbed six rebounds, and had five assists to help the Salve Regina men's basketball team win the 2011 The Commonwealth Coast Conference Men's Basketball Championship with a 68-58, overtime win over Wentworth. The conference title was the third for the Seahawks and the first since 1995. Combined with Salve Regina's women's team winning TCCC title earlier in the day, the Seahawks became just the second conference team in history to win the women's and men's championships in the same season, next to the 1989 Salve Regina men's and women's teams.
Both teams struggled offensively to open the contest and the lead would change hands six times in the opening five minutes. Salve Regina led, 15-13, after Leopard freshman forward Derek Mayo (Casco, Maine) hit a jumper from the elbow, and would score the next six points – with four coming from freshman guard Patrick Dinneen (Medfield, Mass.) – to extend the lead to eight with 6:54 remaining.
The Leopards scored the next four points on baskets by senior forward Sam Herrick (Duxbury, Mass.) and junior guard Adam Dombrowski (Dunstable, Mass.) to cut the lead in half, but Hinkson three upped the lead to seven. Dombrowski hit a jumper with 2:00 left in the half to make it a 24-19 game, which is how the first half would end. Over the first 20:00, neither team shot above 40 percent, with the Leopards shooting 36.0 percent and the Seahawks connecting on 39.3 percent of their shots.
Wentworth cut the lead to three early in the second half by using six points from Herrick, but a three pointer from Hinkson and a transition basket from Dinneen pushed the lead back to eight with 15:11 left. Herrick hit a pair of free throws on the next possession, but Salve Regina got back-to-back threes from Hinkson and Dineen to take a 39-27 lead with 9:49 left. A 9-1 run by Wentworth cut the lead to four with 5:13 left, but Hinkson countered with a four-point play to make it an eight-point game and senior guard Ryan Birrell (Hope, R.I.) hit a basket to increase the lead to double digits.
Trailing by 10 with 3:04 left, Wentworth used a 9-1 run to get within a pair on a Herrick putback with 55 seconds left. Birrell hit two free throws to make it a four-point game before freshman forward Derek Mayo (Casco, Maine) pulled the deficit back to two with 41 seconds left. Two free throws by Dinneen with 39 seconds left gave the Seahawks a four-point cushion before sophomore forward Corey Therriault (Auburn, Maine) hit one of two free throws to make it a three-point contest with 31 seconds left.
A Seahawk turnover off of a rebound of Therriault's second free throw gave Wentworth the ball with 29.3 seconds left. Therriault missed a three pointer, but Dombrowski got the rebound before missing a long ball of his own. Therriault would give the Leopards a chance to tie again, but his shot fell short. Dombrowski was able to get the rebound and buried a trifecta from the right corner with nine seconds left. Hinkson had a chance at the end of regulation, but his deep three fell short.
Hinkson and Birrell combined to hit three of four free throws to open the extra frame and the visitors would lead by as many as six before Therriault hit a three with 2:23 left. That would be as close as the hosts would come as Salve Regina held a four-point lead with 1:17 left and went 4-for-4 from the charity stripe, sandwiched around a transition layup. Wentworth would shoot just 1-for-12 in overtime.
Dinneen added 18 points, seven rebounds, and four steals, while senior forward Dan Royce (Mahwah, N.J.) had 11 points and five rebounds. Birrell finished the contest with eight points, 11 rebounds, and six assists.
Herrick led the Leopards with his 14th double-double of the season as he scored 18 points (on 8-for-14 shooting) and grabbed 14 boards. Therriault added 12 points, four rebounds, and three assists, while Mayo had 11 points, eight rebounds, four assists, and three steals.
Salve Regina wins its fourth straight game and improves to 17-10. The Seahawks will represent TCCC in the NCAA Division III Men's Basketball Tournament, which begins next week. The selection will take place on Monday afternoon. Wentworth sees its season-high seven-game win streak come to an end, falling to 18-10. The Leopards will await a possible ECAC Tournament berth, which will be announced on Monday.
