Springfield, Mass. – February 17, 2024 – The Springfield College men's basketball team completed its 2023-24 campaign this afternoon with a 72-68 setback to Clark University in New England Women's and Men's Athletic Conference (NEWMAC) action.

Clark, which was ranked third in this week's NCAA Division III Region II rankings and is receiving votes in the D3hoops.com national poll, wraps up the regular season at 19-6 overall and 13-3 in NEWMAC play, while Springfield finishes this year at 7-18, 4-12.

Junior Curtiss Blische (Barkahmsted, Conn.) guided Springfield's offense with 15 points, while graduate student Joe Hoch (South Ozone Park, N.Y.) and first-year Xoren Livingston (Wayland, Mass.) both posted 12 points apiece. Hoch added six rebounds, five assists and two steals to his stat line for the Pride. Clark had four student-athletes score in double figures and was paced by Isaiah Taylor, who had 17 points and six rebounds. Kekoa McArdle chipped in with a 13 point, 11 rebound double-double, while Quentin Pridgen notched 14 points and five boards for the visitors.

Clark scored the first 12 points of the game as the Cougars held the Pride scoreless over the opening 5:54 of the contest before Hoch stole the ball and scored in transition for Springfield's initial basket. Trailing 16-4 with 10:51 left in the first, Springfield went on an 8-2 run which featured a three point play by Blische as well as a trio of points from Hoch and a layup from junior Josh Hartley (Brooklyn, N.Y.) to make it an 18-12 game. A three by Pridgen cut Springfield's run and kick started a spurt for the Cougars which saw the visitors regain a double digit lead at 28-16 following a 9-4 run. Over the final 1:47 of the opening half, Springfield outscored Clark 8-4, but it was the Cougars who took a 34-26 edge into the break.

Springfield's offense came alive to open the second as the Pride outscored Clark, 17-6, over the first 6:18 of the half. A layup from Blische paired with a trey from sophomore John Paulino (New Bedford, Mass.) gave Springfield a 43-40 edge – its first lead of the contest. With 9:16 to play, Reid Neumann knocked down a shot from behind the arc and on the ensuing possession the Pride turned the ball over with Taylor hitting a fast break layup as Clark took a 49-46 lead. Both teams traded points as the score stood at 51-51 following a layup from Hartley. Out of a Springfield timeout with 7:01 left on the clock, Clark scored seven straight points to go ahead 58-51 and never looked back as the Cougars won by the 72-68 final.

For the latest on Springfield College Athletics, follow the Pride on social media on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.