TURNOVERS SPOIL FOR BULLDOGS, BRYANT FALLS TO LEHIGH, 88-68, DESPITE STRONG ROOKIE EFFORTS

November 28, 2010

TURNOVERS SPOIL FOR BULLDOGS, BRYANT FALLS TO LEHIGH, 88-68, DESPITE STRONG ROOKIE EFFORTS

BETHLEHEM, Pa. – Reigning Patriot League Player of the Year C.J. McCullom and sophomore classmate Gabe Knutson poured in 27 and 22 points, respectively, as Lehigh University exploded in the second half to take an 88-68 victory over the Bryant University men's basketball team Sunday night at Stabler Arena.

After a shaky start, a 9-0 run over 1:17 turned an eight-point Bryant (1-5) deficit into an 18-17 lead at the 10:45 mark of the opening frame. From there, neither team would allow its opponent more than a three-point edge until the 3:07 mark, when a long Raphael Jordan (Bel Air, Md.) jumper capped off an uninterrupted eight-point run to put the visitors on top by five, 35-30.

But those would be the last points Bryant would see in the half, as the Bulldogs went 0-for-3 and turned the ball over four times in the final three minutes to allow the Mountain Hawks (3-3) to end the frame on a 12-0 run and take a 42-35 lead into the break.

That lead would grow to 13 in the first five minutes of the second session before the Bulldogs cut the score to eight on a Frankie Dobbs (Berea, Ohio) trifecta at the 11:15 mark, 59-51.

But the Black and Gold wouldn't get any closer to the home side for the remainder of the contest. Possession binds early in the half forced the Bryant bench to use up all four of its remaining timeouts with nearly nine minutes left to play and its strongest inside scoring threat, freshman Alex Francis (Harlem, N.Y.), on the bench with four fouls. Sophomore counterpart Vlad Kondratyev (Nikolayev) would join him soon after, taking his fourth whistle with 6:46 remaining.

With no way to stop the clock or Lehigh's strong shooting ranks – led by McCollum's 27 points off 8-of-15 accuracy from the floor – Bryant just couldn't manufacture a second-half surge, eventually suffering an 88-68 defeat.

Kondratyev would foul out of the game with 2:20 left on the clock, ending his day 5-for-7 with a season-best 13 points. He was one of four Bulldogs to record double-digit points, led by Francis's 16 (6-of-15), and the pair was joined by 14 points from rookie starter Corey Maynard (Adelaide, Australia) and 12 from Dobbs. Francis fell a single rebound short of his third-career double-double in the effort but posted a game-high nine boards on the night.

Knutson echoed McCollum's effort with 22 points off 10-of-12 shooting from the field as the Mountain Hawks had four of their own finish in double figures. Lehigh went 18-for-23 from the line in the affair – including a 13-of-17 mark in the second frame – and scored 37 points off Bryant's 19 turnovers. The home side topped its visitors with a 54.2 shooting percentage, while the Bulldogs put up a respectable 46.3 clip.

Bryant returns to the court to open Northeast Conference action on Thursday, December 2 at 7:00 p.m. and will take on Fairleigh Dickinson in Teaneck, N.J. in its only conference matchup of 2010.