Hunt returns to form and helps Ravens hand Falcons first home loss

WALTHAM, Mass. (February 5, 2002) - After struggling to find his offensive touch in his first three halves of play since returning from a stress fracture in his foot, sophomore swingman Jimmie Hunt (Utica, N.Y./Mount Ararat (Maine)) netted 14 second half points, including a pair of key three-pointers in the final three-minutes, to lead Franklin Pierce to an 84-79 victory over Bentley College in Northeast-10 Conference men's basketball action at the Dana Athletic Center tonight.

Franklin Pierce handed Bentley its first home loss of the season in eight dates, marking the second time in the last month the Ravens have spoiled a top-ranked opponent's perfect home mark. Franklin Pierce downed Pace University, 79-71, on January 17.

Hunt finished the night with 18 points on six-of-nine shooting from the field (3-6 from three-point range) and drained all three free-throw attempts in 18 minutes off the bench.

Junior V.J. Kwity (Torrance, Calif./West) helped Franklin Pierce stake out a 40-36 halftime lead as he netted 16 of his team-high 20 points in the stanza. In addition to a perfect 7-7 shooting effort at the line, Kwity also totaled six rebounds, six assists and two steals on the night. Senior forward Kevin Scott (Mississauga, Ontario/Iona Catholic) added 14 points, three steals and two blocks.

Junior Tom Waterman (Bangor, Maine/Bangor) played a solid game at the point, netting nine points to go along with three assists and three steals with no turnovers, while classmate Allister Gall (Plymouth, England/Stoke Demoral) sunk all three of his attempts from long-distance for a season-high nine points.

Senior Jeff Bishop led Bentley with 20 points and six rebounds (four offensive), while junior Andy Erickson totaled 15 points, a game-high 12 rebounds (seven offensive), four steals and two blocks. Senior Mike Mastropaolo chipped in 13 points, seven boards, while classmate Kevin Van Dam added 14 points.

Franklin Pierce limited a solid three-point shooting Bentley team to 26.9-percent (7-26) from beyond the arc in the game, including a 5-17 effort in the opening 20-minutes of play. The Ravens shot 45.8% (11-24) from long-distance, including a blistering 7-12 (58.2%) in the second half. Franklin Pierce was also money at the free-throw line, making its first 17 attempts for the night before finishing with a 19-20 (95%) effort for the night.

Franklin Pierce also took care of the ball, committing just nine turnovers (four second half), which helped offset a huge rebounding disadvantage that saw Bentley post a 42-28 margin on the glass, including a 16-7 cushion on the offensive boards.

Franklin Pierce (12-10, 9-9 NE-10) returns home on Saturday to host Stonehill College at 3 p.m. Bentley (14-7, 13-4 NE-10) hosts Southern New Hampshire University on Saturday at 3:30 p.m.