The University of Rhode Island men’s basketball team opened up its season with a commanding 96-58 victory over Fairfield University on Monday.
The Rams are coming off two seasons with a combined record of 21-42 and back-to-back first-round exits in the Atlantic 10 Tournament. With a starting lineup consisting of four players who weren’t with the team a season ago, URI saw a glimpse on Monday of how the new faces could help lead a turnaround for the program.
“I’m really pleased with our guys being able to get the win,” URI Head Coach Archie Miller said. “I thought we had a lot of guys contribute, we also did some things in the game, I think, that translate as we keep going if we have it.”
One area that the Rams saw dramatic improvement from a season ago was their performance at the free throw line. After ranking last in the conference at 65% last season, Rhode Island came out of the gates by making 34-41 from the charity stripe, which is the most made free throws in a single game since 2006.
“[Free throw shooting] is a big, big reason why things felt funny for us as a team last year,” Miller said. “Going to the line and taking advantage of the opportunities and getting the points, that was a big deal in this game.”
Fairfield took an early 7-5 lead on Monday, but Rhode Island responded with a 10-0 run and never looked back, holding the lead for the final 36:30 of action. Aided by a 12-3 run to close out the half, URI went into the locker room up 45-27. Fourth-year guard Sebastian Thomas led the Rams with 12 points in the opening half.
Thomas made his return to Kingston in the win after spending last season at the University at Albany. He played his first two years of his collegiate career at Rhode Island, before transferring to Albany, where he led the America East Conference in points per game. Now, he comes back to the Rams in a lead role, finishing with a team-high 18 points and seven assists.
“I feel like that year at Albany helped me become a better person, better basketball player,” Thomas said. “Basketball wise, I’m just more confident in my game now, I feel like coach trusts me a little bit more and my teammates trust me.”
The Rams didn’t let their foot off the gas in the second half, as they came out of the locker room on a 13-2 run to extend their lead to 30. First-year forward Tyonne Farrell, who got the start in his first-ever collegiate game, led the charge with 12 second-half points on 4-5 shooting.
“Tyonne is a good player, he’s only going to get better,” Miller said. “He’s going to help the team as a freshman, he’s going to impact this team as a freshman.”
Rhode Island scored 51 points in the closing 20 minutes as it cruised to a 38-point win on opening night, marking its largest margin of victory since Nov. 22, 2023 against Johnson and Wales University. The Rams got contributions from up and down their roster with six different players scoring in double-figures.
“A lot of guys stepped up and I think that’s the truest team element that we have right now,” Miller said. “This team has been specifically assembled in a certain way and it’s to be able to provide instant depth.”
Improvements from a season ago were seen across the board for Rhode Island in the win, notably from beyond the arc on both ends of the court. The Rams ranked second-worst in the conference in opponent three-point percentage last year, and held the Stags to just 4-29 from behind the perimeter. Offensively, the Rams shot 55% from three-point range, 20% better than their average mark last season.
Rhode Island will look to build on this encouraging start when it welcomes the College of the Holy Cross into the Ryan Center at 7 p.m. on Friday. The game can be streamed on ESPN+, with radio broadcasts available on WRIU 90.3 FM and Varsity Network.