Bryant downed by Memphis, 90-72; Ndugba posts second double-double of the season

MEMPHIS, Tenn. – Sophomore Ikenna Ndugba (Boston, Mass.) tallied 17 points and a career-high 11 assists for his third-career double-double, but the Bryant University men's basketball team fell to Memphis, 90-72, Saturday at FedEx Forum in the second game of the Houzz Gotham Classic Presented by TicketIQ.

Freshman Brandon Carroll (Brewster, N.Y.) added 14 points and a career-high nine rebounds, while senior Bosko Kostur (Melbourne, Australia) chipped in 11 points.

GAME INFORMATION
Memphis 90, Bryant 72
Records: Bryant (1-9), Memphis (6-2)
Location: FedEx Forum (Memphis, Tenn.)
Attendance: 4,373

COACH O'SHEA'S COMMENTS

"We just had a bad run at the end of the half with the exclamation point being that crazy three-pointer. A freshman made a mistake in terms of holding onto the ball instead of throwing it at the other basket. They had all the momentum going into halftime.

"In the second half, we couldn't get on the run. We're a young team playing a power school on the road. We're a work in progress right now. Memphis is a very athletic team and I think they're going to do well this year."

KEY MOMENTS

• The Bulldogs answered a 10-0 Memphis run early in the first half with three pointers from Carroll, Kostur and senior Gus Riley (Nelson, New Zealand).
• Bryant led 34-33 with 4:49 to go in the first half before Memphis closed the opening half on a 16-0 run, capping it off with a banked-in three at the halftime buzzer.
• The Bulldogs used a 10-1 run with four points from senior Hunter Ware (Powder Springs, Ga.) to cut the deficit to 18, with a three-pointer by freshman Ryan Layman (Wrentham, Mass.) on the final possession making the final margin 18.

HOW IT HAPPENED

• Bryant opened the game up 6-5, but Memphis responded with a 10-0 run that forced a Bulldog timeout with 14:26 to go in the half.
• The Bulldogs answered to cut it to 16-15 with three pointers from Carroll, Kostur and Riley.
• Bryant took a 34-33 lead with 5:22 to go in the half on a shot by sophomore Sabastian Townes (Chesapeake, Va.), but Memphis responded with a 16-0 run to go into the locker room up 49-34.
• Memphis closed the first half with a steal and banked-in three-pointer at the halftime buzzer.
• There were 11 lead changes in the first half.
• The Tigers scored the first six points of the second half to push the lead to 21 and led by 27 before a 10-1 run to bring the deficit within 18 with 3:39 to go.

STATS

• Ndugba tallied 17 points and a career-high 11 assists along with six rebounds and two steals.
• Carroll was one point shy of Wednesday's career-best in scoring with a 14-point output while adding a career-high nine rebounds.
• Kostur scored 11 points with three three-pointers.
• Layman and Riley each made a pair of three-pointers.
• The Bulldogs had 20 assists in the game, one shy of Wednesday's season-high.
• Bryant shot 39.7 percent from the floor, as opposed to 57.6 percent for Memphis.

GAME NOTES

• Saturday was the first meeting between the Bulldogs and Tigers.
• Ndugba's double-double was the third of his career and second of the season. It was his first in points and assists.
• Ndugba was in double figures in scoring for the eighth-straight game and 16^th time in his career.
• Kostur had 10 or more points for the fifth time this season and 36^th time in his career.
• Carroll averaged 14.5 points and 7.0 rebounds per game in his first two career starts this week.

UP NEXT
Bryant is back in action Monday at 7 p.m. when the Bulldogs travel to Louisville as part of the Houzz Gotham Classic Presented by TicketIQ. The game against the Cardinals can be seen on ESPNU.

Season and single-game tickets for the 2017-18 campaign are currently available by clicking HERE.

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