BULLDOGS UNABLE TO COMPLETE SEASON SWEEP, FALL TO QUINNIPIAC, 80-60, THURSDAY NIGHT

SMITHFIELD, R.I. – The Bryant University men's basketball team pulled within six early in the second half but could not fend off the long range shooting of Quinnipiac, as the Bulldogs fell, 80-60, in Northeast Conference action Thursday night at the Chace Athletic Center.

Following a Barry Latham (Taunton, Mass.) layup to trim the lead down to 44-38 at the 17:40 mark of the second stanza, Quinnipiac (18-8, 10-5 NEC) answered with a 14-2 run, led by a trio of 3-pointers from James Johnson, as the visitors went on to salvage a split in the season series.

Johnson led the Bobcat attack with 24 points, including seven makes from beyond the arc, while Justin Rutty added 16 points and 10 rebounds for the only double-double of the contest. As a team, Quinnipiac shot 52.5 percent from the floor and went 10-for-21 from 3-point range.

Bryant (9-18, 7-8 NEC) was led offensively by freshman Alex Francis (Harlem, N.Y.), who registered 17 points and nine boards, while Cecil Gresham (Bloomfield, Conn.) added 11 points and Frankie Dobbs (Berea, Ohio) and Vlad Kondratyev (Nikolayev, Ukraine) chipped in with 10 apiece.

Quinnipiac opened the game with a strong 12-0 run just three minutes into the contest, until Kondratyev put the home squad on the board with a layup at the 17:04 mark. From there, the Bulldogs chipped away at the early deficit by way of the long range shot, as Gresham and Matt Lee (Bloomfield, N.J.) combined for a trio of 3-pointers over the next four minutes to cut the Bobcat lead to 16-13 with 13:13 remaining before the break.

Following a 3-pointer from Kondratyev, Dobbs sunk a free throw to tie up the score, 23-23, at the 7:05 mark, but Quinnipiac answered with a 15-0 run as back-to-back lay-ins by Rutty put the visitors back on top, 38-23, with 4:14 to play in the half. Gresham ended the scoring drought with a jumper from the corner, followed by a Corey Maynard (Adelaide, Australia) trey, but the Bobcats went into the locker room with a 42-34 advantage.

Deontay Jackson paced the Bobcats with 11 points at the half while Gresham led the way for the home side with eight points on 3-for-6 shooting from the floor including a pair of 3-pointers.

The teams swapped baskets in the early going of the second stanza until four-consecutive Quinnipiac treys, including three from James Johnson, gave the Bobcats the 58-40 advantage with 13:26 remaining. Bryant showed signs of a comeback with consecutive 3-pointers by Kondratyev and Gresham, but the Bobcats responded with a trifecta from Dominique Langston as the visitors ended the half in strong and cruised to the 80-60 victory.

The Black and Gold return to NEC action on Saturday, Feb. 19 when they wrap up 2010-11 home action hosting Sacred Heart for a 2:00 p.m. Senior Day matchup.