Mass, Carty Lead Men's Basketball to Dramatic 83-82 Win over Greensboro

Video: Carty's Game-Winning Basket

GREENSBORO, N.C. – Senior guard Fawaz Mass (Taunton, Mass.) scored a career-high 28 points, and junior forward Joseph Carty (Natick, Mass.) dropped in the game-winning layup at the buzzer to lift the Bridgewater State University men's basketball team to a dramatic 83-82 victory over Greensboro College on Thursday evening at the Guilford College Holiday Classic in Greensboro, North Carolina.

The Bears improve to 7-3 with their fourth straight win, while the Pride fall to 5-4.

Bridgewater trailed 83-82 with under two seconds remaining. Out of a timeout, Carty received a perfectly executed baseline inbounds pass from junior guard Rocky DeAndrade (Mansfield, Mass.) and knocked down the layup to win the game.

Mass put on a terrific offensive performance for the Bears as he went 7-for-11 from the floor, including a perfect 5-for-5 from behind the arc, and knocked down 9 of 10 free throw attempts.

Carty posted a double-double with 14 points and a game-high 14 rebounds, while senior guard Keyon Armstrong (Brockton, Mass.) added 15 points.

Junior guard Joseph Gatling (Columbia, S.C.) paced the Pride with 17 points, while senior forward Donavan Griffith (Greensboro, N.C.) tallied 15. Sophomore guard Zedric Barnett (Franklin County, Va.) added 11 points, while junior forward Dominic Fumbanks (Milwaukee, Wisc.) scored 11 off the bench.

Greensboro looked to be in control of the game in the first half as the Pride used a 14-0 run, highlighted by 11 points from Gatling, to open up a 41-27 lead with four minutes remaining. Gatling knocked down a trio of three-pointers in a span of 59 seconds during the spurt.

Bridgewater would respond, however, as the Bears closed out the half with a 13-2 run to make it a three-point game (43-40) at the break. Six different players scored during the run.

Both teams shot the ball well in the first half but also missed their share of free throws. The Pride connected on 54% (15-28) of their field goal attempts including an impressive 8-for-11 (73%) from behind the arc. The Bears shot 50% (16-32) from the floor and made 5 of 11 (46%) three-point attempts. Greensboro went 5-for-8 at the free throw line, while Bridgewater finished 3-for-8 at the charity stripe in the opening stanza.

Gatling led all players with 11 points in the first half, while Barnett added nine for the Pride. Mass and Armstrong tallied ten and eight points, respectively, for the Bears.

Bridgewater carried the momentum into the second half as a 9-0 run gave the Bears a 49-43 advantage. A DeAndrade jumper started the run, while Mass tallied the next seven points on a four free throws and a three-pointer.

Greensboro chipped away at the deficit and eventually tied the game at 55-55 on a Fumbanks' trifecta. Following a Carty free throw, freshman guard Darus Maddox (Lusby, Md.) drained a three to put the Pride back on top, 58-56, with 11:56 remaining. Later in the period, a Fumbanks layup extended Greensboro's lead to 70-63 as the clock ticked under seven minutes.

The Bears answered with an 8-0 run to jump out in front, 71-70. A three-pointer by Mass highlighted the run, while Carty's layup with 5:09 remaining capped it off.

A pair of free throws by Maddox momentarily put the Pride back on top, 72-71. Carty, however, quickly responded with a layup to jumpstart an 8-0 BSU spurt. Two free throws from senior forward Michael Soares (Milford, Mass.) followed by an Armstrong three-pointer and two more free throws from Mass extended the BSU lead to 79-72 with 2:20 left to play. A pair of free throws by Gatling were answered by two from Armstrong as the Bears maintained the seven-point lead (81-74) with 1:51 showing.

Bridgewater, however, would watch that lead quickly evaporate as Greensboro scored eight straight points capped off by a pair of free throws by Gatling with 8.4 seconds showing on the scoreboard to give the Pride an 82-81 advantage. That would set the stage for Carty's last-second heroics.

The shooting slipped a bit for both teams in the second half as the Bears went 11 for 30 (37%) from the floor and the Pride shot 38% (13-34). Bridgewater, however, made up for it with a 17-for-20 (85%) performance at the charity stripe over the final 20 minutes.

The Guilford College Holiday Classic continues on Friday. The Bears take on host Guilford at seven o'clock, while the Pride face Albion College at three.