#4 Bentley Turns Back Franklin Pierce, 77-65
Falcons ride fast start to remain perfect through first 15 games
WALTHAM, Mass. (January 9, 2007) - Bentley College, ranked fourth in the most recent NABC Division II poll, used a hot start in the first half and had an answer for every Franklin Pierce run the rest of the way in posting a 77-65 victory in Northeast-10 Conference men's basketball action at the Dana Athletic Center tonight.
Junior Yusuf Abdul-Ali (Springfield, Mass.) led a balanced Bentley effort with a game-high 20 points (12 second half) as he hit 6-of-11 shots from the field, including 4-9 from three-point range, to go with three rebounds and four assists. Sophomore Lew Finnegan (Lexington, Mass.) totaled 13 points, nine rebounds, three assists and two steals, while senior Jeff Holmes (Westbrook, Maine) added 13 points and three boards. Freshman Jason Westrol (Brielle, N.J.) chipped in ten points, five rebounds (three offensive) and two assists.
Senior Nazim Senaldi (Istanbul, Turkey) came off the bench to lead Franklin Pierce with a career-best 19 points as he connected on 6-of-12 shots from the field (1-1 three's) and converted 6-of-7 free-throws, to go with three rebounds (two offensive), three assists and three steals. Sophomore Timothy Munch (Blauvelt, N.Y./Storm King Prep) registered 15 points, five rebounds and three steals, while senior Darryl Minnifield (Boston, Mass./Brookline) finished with 13 points, three rebounds, three assists and two steals.
Bentley held a slight edge in shooting for the night, hitting 44.4-percent (24-54) of its shots from the field on the night, including 56% (14-25) in the second half, compared to 43.1% (22-51) for Franklin Pierce, 51.9% (14-27) in the second half. Bentley also took advantage of a 38-26 rebounding advantage, posting a 17-8 scoring edge in second chance points. The Falcons also out-scored the Ravens 23-12 at the free-throw line.
Bentley scored the first 11 points of the game, hitting its first four shots from the field and two free-throw attempts, to take immediate control of the contest. The Falcons held Franklin Pierce to just four points over the opening ten minutes of the contest, charging out to leads of 16-2 (13:54) and 21-5, after a Finnegan three-pointer with 9:51 left in the half.
An 11-3 Franklin Pierce run, capped by a Marcus Wellman (Monroe, Conn./Hamden Hall) three-pointer, drew the Ravens within eight (24-16) with 6:40 left in the frame. Bentley answered and regained a 17-point lead (37-20) after a conventional three-point play by Finnegan with 2:23 left in the stanza.
Franklin Pierce scored the last five points of the half to pull within 12 (37-25) at the break and continued to close the gap, drawing within nine (39-30) after a Munch layup a minute into the second half. Senaldi followed up a Ravens miss to bring the guests within seven (47-40) with 14:41 left, but Bentley regained an 11-point lead (51-40) after an Abdul-Ali layup with 13:11 to go.
The Ravens again cut their deficit to seven (51-44) following two Wellman free-throws with 12:33 remaining, but an 11-2 Falcon run pushed their lead back to 17 (66-49) after a three-point play by junior Nate Fritsch (Durham, N.C.) with 7:06 to play. Franklin Pierce made one final run at the Falcons, closing within eight (73-65) after a Minnifield three-pointer with 1:15 to go, but the hosts hit their last six free-throw attempts over the final 1:32 to seal the victory.
Franklin Pierce (8-7, 6-5 NE-10) is back in action on Saturday when it visits Southern New Hampshire University at 3:30 p.m. The Ravens are back home next Tuesday when it hosts Le Moyne College at 7:30 p.m. Bentley (15-0, 11-0 NE-10) visits Le Moyne College on Saturday at 3 p.m.