Grant, Layman post double-figure efforts in 79-54 loss at Georgia

ATHENS, Ga. – Sophomore Adam Grant (Franklin, Va.) posted a 24-point night to begin the season, but the Bryant University men's basketball team was defeated by Georgia, 79-54, Friday night at Stegeman Coliseum to open the 2017-18 season.

Grant led the way for Bryant with 24 points, while freshman Ryan Layman (Wrentham, Mass.) added 12 points and seven rebounds for the Bulldogs in his collegiate debut.

GAME INFORMATION
^--/rv Georgia 79, Bryant 54
Records: Bryant (0-1), Georgia (1-0)
Location: Stegeman Coliseum (Athens, Ga.)
Attendance: 7,387

COACH O'SHEA'S COMMENTS
"We knew going in that for us to have a chance, we had to make a lot of threes. We had good looks in the first half; we just didn't knock down shots. It was a good strategy, but we just didn't make the shots we needed to. Without Bash Townes, our best inside player, we knew we were going to have trouble scoring around the rim. We pushed the pace, but just didn't knock down the shots we needed to in order to be successful tonight."

KEY MOMENTS

• Bryant opened the scoring on a jumper by sophomore Adam Grant (Franklin, Va.) before Georgia responded with an 11-0 run.
• The Black and Gold had cut the deficit to 25-15 with 7:39 remaining in the first half on a layup by senior Hunter Ware (Powder Springs, Ga.), but Georgia responded with a 29-5 run that spanned both halves to take control.
• Bryant closed the game on a 13-4 run with four points from freshman Monty Urmilevicius (Kaunas, Lithuania).

HOW IT HAPPENED

• Georgia answered a game-opening basket by sophomore Adam Grant (Franklin, Va.) with an 11-0 run. The Bulldogs from Athens would lead by at least six points the rest of the way.
• Grant had 12 points in the first half as Georgia built a 40-17 halftime advantage with a half-ending 15-2 run.
• Georgia opened the second half on a 14-3 run to extend the lead to 54-20 with 15:10 remaining.
• Bryant responded with a 7-0 run of its own that included five straight points from freshman Ryan Layman (Wrentham, Mass.).
• After Georgia took its largest lead of the night at 71-36 with seven minutes to go, an 11-4 spurt with five points from Grant cut the deficit to 75-47 with 3:39 to go.
• Bryant would trim the Georgia lead to 22 on a Layman free throw before Georgia scored the final three points for the 79-54 margin.

STATS

• Sophomore Adam Grant (Franklin, Va.) tallied a team-high 24 points on 8-of-18 shooting with three three-pointers.
• Freshman Ryan Layman (Wrentham, Mass.) was in double-figures in his Bulldog debut with 12 points and a team-high seven rebounds.
• Freshman Monty Urmilevicius (Kaunas, Lithuania) provided a second-half spark, contributing four points and five rebounds.
• Senior Hunter Ware (Powder Springs, Ga.) added six points for the Bulldogs.
• Bryant was outscored 39-37 in the second half.

GAME NOTES

• Bryant falls to 0-1 all-time against Georgia, its first SEC opponent since joining Division I in 2008-09.
• Friday marked the sixth-consecutive season that Bryant has opened the season against either a major conference or nationally ranked opponent.
• Sophomore Adam Grant (Franklin, Va.) was in double-figures in scoring for the 22^nd time in 33 college games.
• Grant's 24-point output was the fifth of more than 20 in his collegiate career.
• Freshmen Brandon Carroll (Brewster, N.Y.), Ryan Layman (Wrentham, Mass.) and Monty Urmilevicius (Kaunas, Lithuania) all made their Bryant debuts Friday.

UP NEXT
The Bulldogs close out their season-opening Southern trip with a Tuesday night clash at NC State. Tuesday's 7 p.m. tip can be seen on ACC Network Extra.

Season and single-game tickets for the 2017-18 campaign are currently available by clicking HERE.

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