Bulldogs fall to Harvard on road, 86-68

CAMBRIDGE, Mass. – Backed by a raucous crowd of well-travelled Bryant fans, freshman forward Dan Garvin (Bethel, Conn.) and senior bigman Alex Francis (Harlem, N.Y.) led the Bryant University men's basketball team with 17 and a career-high 13 points, respectively, but Harvard proved too much to handle, as the Crimson stayed perfect on the young season with a 86-68 victory at Lavietes Pavilion Wednesday night.

Juniors Joe O'Shea (Burlington, Vt.) and Dyami Starks (Duluth, Minn.) – the nation's leading scorer entering the contest – also posted double-figure points for the Bulldogs (2-2) with 11 each, while the Crimson (4-0) were paced by a game-best 25 points from Wesley Saunders and 23 more from Steve Moundou-Missi. Kyle Casey added 14 in the Harvard victory.

The Bulldogs utilized their full bench despite the losing effort, with multiple Bulldogs – most notably Garvin – getting their first major minutes of the season. Garvin would see 24 minutes of action and go 5-for-7 from the floor and 3-for-3 from the line.

Turnovers hampered both sides through the opening frame, but it was Moundou-Missi who truly plagued the Black and Gold in the game's first 10 minutes. Moundou-Missi handled whatever the Bulldogs threw at him, scoring 12 of the team's first 25 points, but the junior wouldn't get another point before the end of the half, closing the frame with 12.

The Crimson, however, did have an answer for Starks, who was held to just a single basket and only four shots over the first 15 minutes and finished the half just 3-for-7 with seven points. He would end up just 3-for-10 on the night with a 4-for-4 mark from the charity stripe.

The teams would play to a near stalemate, 18-17, through the first nine minutes, but a 7-0 Harvard streak ran the margin to 25-17 in favor of the hosts at the 9:29 mark. The run was part of a 13-5 stretch that would put Bryant behind by nine, 31-22, with 5:37 to go before an O'Shea trey – the Bulldogs' first of the night – brought the deficit back to six.

The Crimson would take their largest lead of the frame inside the final two minutes, 41-29, off a layup by Casey, and the Bulldogs would head to the locker room trailing, 43-34, at the break.

Bryant went just 6-of-10 from the free throw line in the opening stanza, but the real difference would show on the glass, as Harvard outrebounded the Bulldogs, 16-13, with a three-rebound edge on the offensive boards. That edge would get the home side 13 second-chance points to Bryant's five – a number that would end up at 25 by the end of the contest.

Bryant would cut the deficit down to seven with the opening basket of the second half, but Harvard would surge out to a 13-point advantage, 54-41, with 16:22 remaining in the contest. The Bulldogs would make up some ground and cut the deficit to eight five minutes into the session with a 5-0 run, but the Crimson would score the next seven to up their lead to 61-46 after a long ball from Laurent Rivard from the left side.

The Bulldogs would answer minutes later with an 8-0 run of their own to close the gap back to eight, 63-55, on the back of four-straight Starks free throws with less than 10 to play in the contest, but turnovers and fouls would bring an end to Bryant's run, as Harvard was consistent and accurate from the free throw line en route to a 16-2 run that would build the hosts their largest lead of the night, 79-57, as the clock ticked under five to go.

Both teams finished the outing shooting better than 50 percent, with Harvard's .571 clip topping the Bulldogs' .510 mark. The Crimson dominated on the glass, 33-24, pulling in 15 offensive boards, and scored 28 points off Bryant's season-high 19 turnovers. Harvard posted 11 blocks to Bryant's five, while the Bulldogs totaled 13 steals (11 for Harvard).

The Bulldogs will need to get over the defeat quickly to get ready for their next contest, a Sunday afternoon matchup on the road against the University of New Hampshire (1 p.m.).