Trinity scored outscored the Pride, 17-4, over the final 4:45 of the game with 15 of the 17 Bantam points scored by junior guard Kino Clarke (Brooklyn, N.Y.) and freshman forward Aaron Westbrooks (Dublin, Ireland). With Springfield leading, 57-50, Westbrooks began the run with his third three-pointer of the game to cut the Pride lead to four and Clarke scored 10 of the next 12 points, including the game-tying pair of free throws after stripping the ball from the Springfield point guard in the backcourt. Clarke put Trinity ahead, 61-59, on a 15-foot jumper with less than a minute on the clock and combined with Westbrooks to make six free throws in as many attempts to secure the victory.
Rhoten passed Ken Abere’86 on the Trinity College all-time scoring list with his seventh point of the night and his 1,817th career point early in the first half, becoming the all-time leading scorer in Bantam men’s basketball history, and finished the night with 1,832 points in his career. Rhoten carried the Trinity offense early with 14 points in the first half. Clarke and Westbrooks scored 13 points apiece in the second half to finish with 17 and 15, respectively, and both added four rebounds. Junior guard Patrick Martin (Springfield, Mass.) pulled down a game-high 10 boards and dished out a game-high nine assists for the Bantams.
Springfield used a 14-4 run midway through the first half to take its 57-50 lead, as senior forward Brian Riley (Worcester, Mass.) paced the Pride with eight of the 14 points during the spurt. Pride senior co-captain forward Mike DeCesar (Acton, Mass.) scored a team-high 19 points with four rebounds, and four assists, while senior co-captain guard Derek Yvon (East Longmeadow, Mass.) added 13 points and seven boards, and Riley finished with 12 points and a team-high eight rebounds.
Springfield (1-6) 29-32--61
Trinity, Conn. (6-2) 29-38--67