Springfield, Mass. – February 12, 2025 – The Springfield College men's basketball team used yet another 15-0 run midway through the second half to secure a 70-52 New England Women's and Men's Athletic Conference (NEWMAC) victory over Coast Guard on Wednesday night in Blake Arena.
Springfield improved to 10-12 overall and to 7-6 in the NEWMAC, while Coast Guard dropped to 8-14 overall and to 4-9 in the league. This marks the first time the Pride have surpassed the 10-win mark since the 2019-20 season and under coach
Michael McClendon. It was Springfield's first victory over the Bears since the 2022-23 campaign.
Josiah Evely (Toronto, Canada) did a little bit of everything for the Pride, pacing the offensive unit with 21 points to go along with five rebounds, three blocks and a steal.
Cedric Rodriguez (Burlington, Mass.) added 19 points of his own alongside six boards and three triples.
Jarron Flynn (Roslindale, Mass.) chipped in 17 points, four boards, an assist and a steal.
Rashard Samuels (Upper Marlboro, Md.) and
Reece Samuels (Upper Marlboro, Md.) both poured in career-high scoring performances, with 13 and 10 points, respectively. Luke Farrell led the way for Coast Guard with 24 points.
Rodriguez paced the offensive unit for Springfield to start the game, connecting on a pull-up jumper and right-wing triple in the opening five minutes as the Pride fell into an early 10-5 hole. The teams traded buckets until
Rashard Samuels checked in with 11:23 left in the half. For the second time in as many games, Rashard, and his twin brother Reece, led the Pride to momentum shifting runs. Immediately after checking in, Rashard fired a pass to a wide-open Evely for three, then hitting nothing but net on a step-back jumper on the next possession. 47 seconds later, Rashard hit Reece for a long three, giving Springfield the lead, 19-17, with 10:00 remaining. By the time Rashard came out with 6:35 left, and after knocking down a triple of his own in addition to a coast-to-coast pull-up jumper, Springfield's lead ballooned to 31-19. A back-and-forth battle ensued for the remaining minutes, before Flynn powered his way inside, finishing at the rim to give Springfield a 43-33 advantage at the break.
Coast Guard opened the second half on a 19-7 run, as Trevor Parks knotted the game at 50 connecting on a left-wing three with 14:31 left in the game, and Declan Rooney's pull-up jumper found nylon on the ensuing possession to steal the lead from Springfield. The lead was short-lived however, as much to the joy of the fans, the Samuels' connected on another three to give the Pride a 55-54 lead with 12:33 remaining. The spark started a 15-0 run for Springfield – the second run of such in the last two games – that saw Evely tally seven points, pushing the Pride's advantage to 65-54.
A triple from Evely and five-straight points from
Xoren Livingston (Wayland, Mass.) kept Springfield's lead at double-digits, 74-64, with under five minutes remaining. The lead proved to be too much for the Bears, as the Pride held on to win.
As a team, Springfield connected its most three-point field goals of the season with 10, on an also season-high 50-percent (10-for-20) effort from the field. The Pride registered nine total blocks and six steals, while also holding a 40-37 edge on the glass.
Springfield will travel to Emerson on Saturday afternoon at Brown and Plofker Gymnasium for a NEWMAC clash at 1:00 pm.
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(Recap Courtesy of Braedan Shea '25)
