Bulldogs fall to The Mount, 75-69, in NEC Quarters

MEN'S HOOPS DROPS TOUGH ONE, 75-69, VS. MOUNT ST. MARY'S IN FRONT OF PACKED CROWD IN NEC QUARTERFINALS

SMITHFIELD, R.I. – Despite holding A seven-point halftime advantage, the #4 seeded Bryant University men's basketball team fell to #5 Mount St. Mary's, 75-69, in the Northeast Conference Quarterfinal matchup at the Chace Athletic Center Wednesday night.

With just under five minutes to go the Mountaineers (17-13) lead stood at nine points but a trio of huge buckets from senior Vlad Kondratyev (Nikolayev, Ukraine) pulled the Bulldogs (19-11) within five points, 63-58, with 3:34 left on the clock.

A pair of Raven Barber free throws extended the visitor's lead, but two freebies from Frankie Dobbs (Berea, Ohio) and 1-of-2 at the line from Alex Francis (Harlem, N.Y.) pulled the Black and Gold back within four with just under three minutes to play.

Shivaughn Wiggins answered right back for the Mountaineers just before the shot clock expired to extend the lead to six. Wiggins knocked down a pair from the line to push the Mount advantage at eight points, 69-61 with 1:27 left on the clock.

A huge trifecta from Dobbs pulled Bryant back within five, but time was against the hosts with just over a minute remaining in the contest.

The Bulldogs were unable to convert from the field in the final minute of the contest as dead-on free throw shooting by the Mountaineers secured the 75-69 victory.

Francis paced all scorers with a game-high 25 points to go along with his eight rebounds in 40 minutes of play, while sophomore guard Dyami Starks (Duluth, Minn.) put up 19 points and eight boards of his own. Kondratyev added 12 points and eight rebounds and Dobbs finished with 10 points and a trio of assists. Junior Corey Maynard (Adelaide, Australia) also grabbed eight boards and three points to round out the Bryant scorers. All five Bryant starters played at least 30 minutes and accounted for all 69 of the Bulldog's points.

Rashad Whack led the Mountaineers with 19 points, eight boards and four assists, while Wiggins put up 16 points and a pair of steals. Raven Barber and Julian Norfleet each chipped in 14 points with Barber hitting all eight of his attempts from the free throw line.

The Bulldogs outshot their opposition from the field, 45 percent to 37 percent, and outrebounded The Mount, 38-35. However, the difference in the contest came at the charity stripe where Mount St. Mary's shot 96 percent (26-27), inclduing a perfect 15-of-15 in the second half. 

The two evenly matched teams opened the contest with a lot of back-and-forth action with both teams holding the lead at least once in the opening seven minutes, but it was the Bulldogs who found themselves up, 14-12, at the 13:02 mark of the opening frame.

Over the next five minutes, both teams traded baskets but the Bryant lead never wavered as the Bulldogs held a 22-20 with under minutes to play until the break. Francis rattled of eight-straight points to grant the Black and Gold their largest lead of the night, 30-24, at the under-four media break.

The Mount cut the Bulldog lead to just two points, but five-straight from Starks, including a huge block on the defensive end, propelled Bryant into a seven-point advantage, 35-28, at the half.

Francis led all scorers at the break with 14 points in 20 minutes of play, while Starks put up 12 points and four rebounds. The balanced Mount attack was paced by eight points from Barber and six points from Prescott. The Mount shot just 28 percent from the field while Bryant put up a 48 percent clip from the field. Bryant outscored the visitors, 22-6, in the painted area during the first frame.

The Mount came out of the locker room strong, opening up an 11-4 run to bring the score to an even 39-39 tie at the under 16 media timeout. The visitors took their first lead since the opening minutes of the contest, 42-41, at the 13:30 mark off a deep ball from Whack. The lead changed hands two more times on 3-pointers from Dobbs and Wahck, but the Mountaineers remained out front, 45-44, with less than 12 minutes to play.

After both teams took their turn holding the lead over the next two minutes, the Mount strung together four-straight points to take its largest lead of the game, 51-49 with 7:52 left on the clock.

The 13-6 run charged by some great play at the defensive end granted Mount St. Mary's the 58-50 edge with just over six minutes to play.

The Bulldogs close the 2012-13 campaign with an overall mark of 19-11, the best pure win improvement in Division I men's basketball this season.

For all the latest news on the Bryant University men's basketball team, visit BryantBulldogs.com.