PROVIDENCE, R.I. (11/11/2026) - The Nichols College men's basketball team earned its first victory of the 2026-27 season on Wednesday evening, defeating Rhode Island College, 67-61 in non-conference play at The Murray Center.
With the win, the Bison improve to 1-1 on the season, while the Anchormen start off at 0-1 with the loss.
The Bison and Anchormen traded baskets throughout a tightly contested first half, with neither team able to create much separation. Nichols opened the scoring with an
Ethan Minarik three-pointer off an assist from
Luke Chapman less than a minute into the action, but Rhode Island College responded to keep the game close.
Simon Percy and Minarik continued to help pace the Bison offensively throughout the half, while additionally working to generate opportunities off the glass. Despite the back-and-forth play, the Anchormen would hold a slim 28-27 advantage heading into halftime.
Nichols came out strong in the second half, scoring the first four points to reclaim the lead. Chapman scored consecutive baskets inside before
Jaylen Kirkland added a layup to help build momentum, before Minarik and Kirkland followed with respective triples to extend the Nichols advantage to 40-32 midway through the period. From there, the Bison maintained control, pushing their lead to as many as 12 points at 48-36 following a pair of baskets from Percy. The Anchormen attempted to find their way back into the contest, eventually cutting the deficit to three points at 62-59 with just over a minute remaining, but fell further back when Minarik knocked down a clutch three-pointer with 1:58 remaining to push the lead back to six. Percy then converted a pair of free throws, and Minarik added a layup in the final minute to help seal the 67-61 victory.
Percy led the Bison with 16 points on 6-of-11 shooting, adding seven rebounds, three assists, and two steals. Minarik finished with 14 points, four assists, and four rebounds, while Chapman contributed eight points and seven rebounds.
Cassidy Bonsu recorded a game-high 10 rebounds, including seven on the offensive glass, with the team finishing the night with 58 total boards.
Nichols also scored 17 second-chance points in the effort, and shot 25-of-68 (36.8%) from the field.
The Bison will return to action this upcoming Saturday against non-conference Clark University (2-1), with gametime set for 4:00 PM at the Nichols Athletic Center.
