Green, Cardenas fuel comeback win at St. Francis Brooklyn

BROOKLYN HEIGHTS, N.Y. – Freshman Michael Green III (Bronx, N.Y.) scored a career-high 23 points as the Bryant University men's basketball team came back in the closing minutes to win for the first time ever at St. Francis Brooklyn with an 82-74 victory Friday night. 

Senior Juan Cardenas (Apartado, Colombia) added 22 points and nine rebounds for Bryant, which won for the fourth time in its last six games. The Bulldogs matched their Division I program record for rebounds against a D1 opponent set earlier this season against Saint Peter's.

GAME INFORMATION 
Bryant 82, St. Francis Brooklyn 74
Records: Bryant (14-14, 6-9 NEC), St. Francis Brooklyn (12-15, 6-9 NEC)
Location: Pope Physical Education Center (Brooklyn Heights, N.Y.)

KEY MOMENTS 

• The Bulldogs started out down 6-0, and out of a timeout, ripped off a 20-4 run to take a 10-point lead.
• Bryant led by as many as 13 in the first half, but St. Francis cut the advantage to five heading to the locker room.
• The Terriers led by three with 4:25 to play, but the Bulldogs outscored their hosts 18-5 over the remainder of the contest.

HOW IT HAPPENED 

•  The Terriers scored the first six points of the contest, prompting a Bulldog timeout 100 seconds into the game.
• Bryant responded with a 20-4 run that featured seven points from senior Adam Grant (Franklin, Va.) to lead 20-10 with 13:13 remaining in the half.
• A pair of threes from freshman Benson Lin (New Taipei City, Taiwan) helped an 10-2 stretch that pushed the advantage back to 11 at 38-27 with 5:06 before halftime. The run would extend to 16-5 to put Bryant in front 42-29 with three minutes remaining.
• St. Francis closed the half on a 12-2 run to cut Bryant's halftime advantage to 46-41.
• The Terriers trimmed the margin to three at 48-45 before a 9-2 spurt from the Bulldogs to the lead to 10 at 57-47 with 13:14 to play.
• St. Francis tied the game at 61 with 7:33 to play and took the lead at 64-63 with 6:00 to play. The Terriers led by three before the Bulldogs tied the game at 69 with 4:09 to play on a Cardenas three.
• The Cardenas triple started a 9-0 Bryant run, with six straight points from Green giving the Bulldogs a 75-69 cushion with 1:44 to play.
• The Bulldogs iced the game at the free throw line and finished the game with an 18-5 run.

STATS 

• Green was 10-for-22 from the field while adding five rebounds and six assists.
• Cardenas was one rebound shy of his second straight double-double.
• Lin scored 14 points while going 4-for-7 from three with a career-best two blocks.
• Grant added 10 points and seven rebounds.
• Sophomore Patrick Harding (Fairfield, Conn.) grabbed nine rebounds, while redshirt-junior Hall Elisias (Valley Stream, N.Y.) hauled in eight.
• Bryant shot 42.6% for the game and 7-for-19 from three. St. Francis shot 42.0% from the field and 10-of-31 from distance.
• The Bulldogs committed 13 turnovers, while the Terriers limited themselves to six.

GAME NOTES 

• Bryant improves to 9-12 all-time against St. Francis Brooklyn and 1-9 in Brooklyn Heights. The Bulldogs swept the regular season series with the Terriers for the first time in program history.
• The Bulldogs' 46 first half points were their most this season against a Division I opponent.
• Bryant is .500 through 28 games for the first time since 2014-15. That year's team finished 16-15.
• Green is averaging 18.8 points per game over his last four outings.
• Friday's results around the NEC moved Bryant into a four-way tie with Fairleigh Dickinson, Mount St. Mary's and St. Francis Brooklyn for the No. 5 seed in the upcoming NEC tournament.

UP NEXT 
Bryant hosts Sacred Heart Sunday at 1 p.m. for Senior Day. Tickets are available by clicking HERE and the game can be seen on YurView New England and NEC Front Row.

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