Bulldogs look to end four-game skid, play at Sacred Heart, Saturday at 3:30 p.m.

GAME NOTES

SMITHFIELD, R.I. -- The Bryant University men's basketball team remains in the state of Connecticut, taking on Sacred Heart at 3:30 p.m. on Saturday. Tipoff at the William H. Pitt Center can be heard on WOON 1240 AM (Jon Wallach).

THE SERIES
The Bulldogs have a richer history with the Pioneers than any other league opponent, matching up against the foes from Fairfield, Conn. 31 times dating back to the 1965-66 season. The Pioneers lead the all-time series, 18-13, and hold a 10-5 record at the Division I level. Although Sacred Heart holds the series edge, 9-3, in Fairfield, Bryant leads the series, 10-9, in Smithfield after winning last seasons NEC Quarterfinal OT thriller at the Chace Athletic Center.     

SCOUTING THE PIONEERS
Sacred Heart's third-ranked scoring offense in the NEC is led by the league's leading point-getter in sophomore Cane Broome. Broome nets 21.9 per game, ranking 14th at the Division I level, while shooting 42.7 percent from the floor. Freshman Quincy McKnight scores 11.8 points per effort and senior Jordan Allen posts 10.6 points per try while leading the team in field goal percentage (52.0). Senior Tevin Falzon tallies 10.2 points per attempt and leads the Pioneers with 7.3 rebounds and 1.4 blocks per game. The Pioneers accumulate 71.7 points per game and shoot at a .429 clip from the field as a unit, a mark that ranks second in the conference. SHU struggles defensively however, allowing a league-worst 80.5 points per game and opponents to shoot 40.1 percent from beyond the arc.    

CURRENT BULLDOGS VS. SACRED HEART
Seven current Bulldogs have squared off with the Pioneers in their careers, with six doing so at least three times. Junior forward Dan Garvin accumulates 12.8 points, 9.8 boards and over 2.0 blocks per contest in four career matchups with Sacred Heart. He posted a double-double of 14.7 points and 12.3 caroms in the Bulldogs' three games versus the Pioneers last season. Sophomroe guard Bosko Kostur averaged 10.7 points and 5.3 rebounds in his only three games against the Pioneers last season, shooting nearly 48 percent from the floor (11-23). Senior captain Shane McLaughlin has played Sacred Heart the most of any current Black and Gold member, as he nets 7.0 points and four boards in seven battles with the Pioneers. Last season, McLaughlin scored 12.3 points, grabbed 5.7 rebounds, and dished out over 5.0 assists per contest in three tries versus SHU. Current Bulldogs are shooting a combined 43.7 percent (60-137) from the floor against the Pioneers.
 
BRYANT vs. THE NORTHEAST CONFERENCE  
The Bulldogs are 4-5 against Northeast Conference competition in 2015-16 with an overall record of 47-67 (.412) against current NEC members since joining the Division I ranks. Prior to the 2012-13 campaign, Bryant held a 9-44 record against conference opponents, but has recorded a 38-23 record (.622) over the last three seasons. The Black and Gold are 22-11 at home versus the NEC and 19-14 on the road since 2012-13. All-time against current conference institutions, the Bulldog basketball program is 61-84 (.420). Bryant finished 2014-15 NEC play with a 12-6 league record, earning the No. 3 seed in the 2015 NEC Tournament, and won its first postseason game at the DI level by defeating Sacred Heart, 91-85, in the Quartefinals.

LAST TIME OUT
The Bulldogs took a five-point halftime lead and stretched it out as many as 11 in the second half, but were outscored 34-12 over the final 13 minutes, ultimately falling to Central Connecticut, 78-67, Thursday night in New Britain. Freshmen Nisre Zouzoua and Marcel Pettway scored 19 and 13 points, respectively, as Pettway picked up his seventh double-double of the season with 10 caroms. Sophomore Hunter Ware poured in 12 points and five boards, while junior Dan Garvin added 10 points and seven rebounds. Brandon Peel paced the Blue Devils with contest highs of 22 points and 18 rebounds. Jahlil Nails poured in 17 points, as three other host players finished in double-figures. The Bulldogs shot 40.3 percent from the floor (27-67), but just 24 percent from long range (7-29). The Blue Devils converted 43 percent of their shots from the field (25-58) and 23 percent of their shots from long range (3-13).
 
DON'T DROP THAT HALF-TIME LEAD
The Bulldogs have now lost consecutive games when leading at the half. After blowing their largest halftime edge in a losing effort against Saint Francis U. (17 points) on Jan. 21, Bryant fell to CCSU on Thursday despite holding a five-point advantage at the break. The Black and Gold are 45-15 since the 2012-13 campaign when leading at the intermission.

LONG RANGE MARKSMEN
Senior captain Shane McLaughlin and sophomore guard Hunter Ware have been red hot from beyond the arc this season. McLaughlin nets 40.7 percent of his triples (22-54) and Ware sinks 40.2 percent (47-117), as the two sit third and fifth, respectively, in the NEC in 3-point field goal percentage. The senior and the sophomore have been even hotter from long range against conference opponents, recording clips of .458 and .488, respectively. Only one player has finished a season among the top-five 3-point NEC shooters in Bryant's Division I history, as that long range assasin was sophomore Bosko Kostur last year with a clip of .441.   

AND THESE FRESHMEN AIN'T NEVER DID THIS BEFORE, NO
The Bulldogs have a bright future in rookie bigman Marcel Pettway and first-year guard Nisre Zouzoua, but are well positioned in the present as well. The freshmen are averaging 11.3 and 10.9 points per game, respectively, to rank them second and fourth among NEC rookies, as Pettway nets 16.0 points per contest in conference play, ranking him fourth overall and first among league froshes. The forward-guard combo amasses 22.2 points per effort, and ranked 13th among all newcomer scoring duos at the Division I level to begin the week (Jan. 25).  

MODEL OF ASSISTANCY
Senior captain Shane McLaughlin nearly charted a triple-double by netting 21 points, grabbing a career-high 10 caroms, and dishing out eight assists in the 2OT win over Mount St. Mary's on Jan. 9, making the guard the first player in Bryant's Division I history to record at least 20 points, 10 boards and five assists in a game. McLaughlin has now distributed at least five assists in 10 of the last 11 contests. The Old Tappan, N.J. native leads the Northeast Conference in assists per game with 5.45 and 7.00 helpers in conference play.  

HIGH MILEAGE FOR MCLAUGHLIN
Senior point guard Shane McLaughlin is once again proving to be a workhorse for the Bulldogs on the court, playing 34 minutes or more in 21 of the season's first 22 contests. The Old Tappan, N.J., native was third in the NEC last year with an average of 36.68 minutes per game and currently sits first as a senior with an average of 37.77 minutes per outing (fifth nationally). As a starter (66 games), McLaughlin has played 37 minutes or more 37 times. He has played the entire game nine times in the span, including all 50 minutes in a double-overtime win against Sacred Heart in last year's NEC Tournament. McLaughlin logged 48 minutes on the floor in the double-overtime win over Mount St. Mary's on Jan. 9.

ON THE REBOUND
The Bulldogs have been outrebounded in 18 of their 22 games this season, losing the battle on the glass in each of the first 12 games to begin the year. This was the first time in the program's Division I history the team had opened a campaign on the short side on the glass in 12-straight outings. The last time the Bulldogs were outboarded in more than seven-straight games at any point in a season was back in 2011-12, when the team lost the battle on the boards in nine-consecutive games from Nov. 27-Jan. 5. To find the last time the squad was outrebounded in 12 or more straight contests, you must look all the way back to the 2009-10 season, when the Bulldogs lost the board battle in 20 in a row from Dec. 3-Feb. 13.

LINEUP DANCING
Through 22 games in this 2015-16 campaign, the Bulldogs have unveiled eight variations of their starting lineup. Head coach Tim O'Shea has repeated a starting lineup just twice this year, but has found success in a consistent opening five of late. The cast of senior Shane McLaughlin, sophomore Hunter Ware, freshman Nisre Zouzoua, freshman Marcel Pettway and junior Dan Garvin have earned 13-consecutive starting nods from Dec. 8 - Jan. 28. The Bulldogs have not seen eight or more editions of a starting lineup since the 2011-12 season.

UP NEXT
The Bulldogs begin the final month of the regular season in Loretto, Pa. taking on Saint Francis U. on Thursday at 7:00 p.m in DeGol Arena.