Bryant tips off 2019-20 Tuesday at home vs. Brown
SMITHFIELD, R.I. - The Bryant University men's basketball team tips off its 58th season and second under head coach Jared Grasso at home Tuesday when Brown visits the Chace Athletic Center.
The Particulars
Opponent: Brown
Location: Chace Athletic Center – Smithfield, R.I.
Date and Time: Tuesday – 7 p.m.
Tickets: Tuesday | Season Tickets
Watch: NEC Front Row (Jon Wallach, Hunter Ware)
Live Stats: Sidearm Stats
Game Notes: Bryant
Social Media: Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | #12Seven4 | #NECMBB
SCOUTING THE BEARS
Brown is coming off a 20-12 season in 2018-19 with a victory over UAB in the CBI. The Bears went 7-7 in Ivy League play.
Leading scorer Desmond Cambridge transferred in the offseason, which elevates Tamenang Choh to the title of Brown's leading returning scorer at 12.3 points per game. Choh shot 50.6 percent from the floor and also led the Bears in rebounds and assists.
THE SERIES
Brown holds a 16-2 all-time advantage and 9-2 record in the Division I series with wins in the last five meetings. The Bears used a big first-half run to build a lead and defeat the Bulldogs last November on the East Side. Adam Grant (Franklin, Va.) led all scorers with 20 points.
POLLING PLACE
Bryant was picked sixth in the NEC preseason coaches' poll announced in October at NEC Social Media Day in Brooklyn. The conference's eventual tournament champion has been a team picked sixth or lower in three of the last six seasons.
GRANT-LAND
Grant was named a preseason All-NEC selection in October at Barclays Center, making him Bryant's first preseason honoree since Dan Garvin in 2015-16.
THE CHASE STARTS AT THE CHACE
Bryant will open the season at home for the first time since the Bulldogs' inaugural Division I campaign in 2008-09, when Bryant hosted Albany to tip off the year.
TRIPLE PLAY
Bryant was the only team in the nation in 2018-19 to triple its win total from a year ago. The Bulldogs also raised their NEC wins from two to seven last season.
DYNAMIC DUO
Grant and senior SaBastian Townes (Chesapeake, Va.) are the only returning tandem in the NEC to both average 15 or more points per game in 2018-19. Grant ranks third among returning NEC scorers at 15.6 points per game last season while Townes is fourth at 15.1.
0 BACK TO 100
Redshirt-junior Ikenna Ndugba (Boston, Mass.) returns to the floor Tuesday after missing the entire 2018-19 season with a shoulder injury. Ndugba, who averaged 13.8 points per game as a sophomore in 2017-18, enters Tuesday's contest one steal away from 100 for his collegiate career.
BLOCK & GOLD
Senior Juan Cardenas (Apartado, Colombia) tallied 46 blocks in his first season in Black & Gold, good for third in the NEC. Cardenas has already risen to fifth in Bryant's Division I era in career blocks.
BOARD GAMES
Sophomore Patrick Harding (Fairfield, Conn.) led all freshmen nationally with a 27.4 defensive rebounding percentage in 2018-19, per KenPom. Harding ranked 25th nationally and second in the NEC.
JUAN LOOKS TO BUILD ON STRONG FINISH
Cardenas averaged 11.6 points and 6.3 rebounds per game in his final 10 contests of 2018-19. Cardenas scored 17 points in the NEC quarterfinal clash with Saint Francis U.
UP NEXT: RUTGERS
Bryant will have a quick turnaround for a Thursday meeting with Big Ten member Rutgers at 7 p.m. on Big Ten Network.
Bryant Men's Basketball 2019-20 season tickets are available by clicking HERE.
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