By Jim Fenton
BRIDGEWATER, Mass. -- Here's a look at the week ahead (Feb. 3-9) for the Bridgewater State University athletics teams:
WEDNESDAY
MEN'S BASKETBALL, at home, Framingham State, 5:30 PM: The Bears look to improve on a 2-8 record at the Tinsley Center when they host the Rams (9-11, 3-4 MASCAC).
BSU lost at Framingham State, 78-75, on Jan. 11 despite 27 points, seven rebounds and five assists from junior guard Dante Kikuba (Framingham, Mass.).
Kikuba is just 14 points shy of becoming the program's 31st player to score 1,000 career points.
The Bears are 7-13 and 2-5 in the MASCAC with five games remaining. Framingham State has dropped its last three games.
WOMEN'S BASKETBALL, at home, Framingham State, 7:30 PM: The first-place Bears host the second-place Rams in a key MASCAC game at the Tinsley Center.
BSU (13-6) is 5-1 in the conference while Framingham State (11-7) is 4-2, tied with Salem State University.
The Bears are on a six-game winning streak while the Rams have won four straight.
BSU won at Framingham State, 77-67, on Jan. 11.
This will be the annual Play4Kay Game, which brings awareness to the fight against cancer in honor of late North Carolina State women's basketball coach Kay Yow, who died of the disease in 2009.
FRIDAY
MEN'S TRACK & Field, at the Tufts Cupid Invitational, 3:00 PM: The Bears' heptathletes will travel to the Gantcher Family Sports and Convocation Center in Medford for the opening day of the two-day meet.
The competition will conclude on Saturday beginning at 9 a.m.
SATURDAY
MEN'S TRACK & FIELD, at the Crimson Open, 11:00 AM: BSU will be represented at the event, hosted by Harvard University.
WOMEN'S TRACK & FIELD, at the Crimson Open, 11:00 AM: The Bears take part in their final competition before the MASCAC Championships on Feb. 16.
WRESTLING, Tri-meet, at New London, Conn.: The Bears go against nationally ranked New York University at 11 a.m. and Hunter College at 1 p.m. at the Billard Hall with the U.S. Coast Guard Academy hosting.
The Bears went against both teams in a tri-meet in New York last season.
They lost to NYU and defeated Hunter, 42-12. NYU is currently ranked No. 20 in the NCAA Division III poll.
This is BSU's final competition until the New England Wrestling Association Futures Tournament on Feb. 23 in Springfield.
MEN'S BASKETBALL, at home, Mass. College of Liberal Arts, Noon: The Bears were handed a 77-69 loss in North Adams by the Trailblazers on Jan. 15 despite 19 points from TJ Williams (Jupiter, Fla.).
BSU and Mass. College (4-15) open the week tied in the MASCAC standings at 2-5.
This is the next-to-last home game for the Bears.
WOMEN’S BASKETBALL, at home, Massasoit Community College, 2:00 PM: The Bears will honor seniors prior to the scrimmage with the Warriors on Senior Day.