Men's Basketball Posts 81-79 Comeback Win Over UMass Dartmouth

BRIDGEWATER, Mass. -- The Bridgewater State University men's basketball team erased a 15-point second half deficit as the visiting Bears posted an 81-79 victory over UMass Dartmouth on Wednesday night at the Tripp Center.

The Bears improve to 6-0 on the season while the Corsairs fall to 1-4. The win marked Bridgewater State's first over the Corsairs since December of 2014 as UMass had won each of the last six meetings of the two teams.

BSU graduate center Emerson Halbleib (Carmel, Ind.) posted a double-double with 18 points and 12 rebounds (five offensive), while senior guard Precious Okoh (Brockton, Mass.) scored a game-high 19 points to go along with seven rebounds and three assists. Halbleib, who notched his team-leading fourth double-double of the season, also added two steals and two blocked shots.

Sophomore guard Quinton Champagne (Wrentham, Mass.) checked in with a season-high 16 points for the Bears on 5 of 9 shooting including a trio of three-pointers, while freshman guard Dante Kikuba (Framingham, Mass.) contributed ten points and six boards. Champagne also pulled down five rebounds and dished out three assists.

Six players finished in double figure scoring for UMass Dartmouth. Sophomore forward Theo Jadotte (Providence, R.I.) recorded a double-double with 13 points and 13 rebounds in 28 minutes off the bench. UMass also received 15 points and four assists from senior guard Dhalyn Sanders-Dyer (Worcester, Mass.) and well as 14 points and six rebounds from senior guard John Martins Jr. (Taunton, Mass.). Junior guard Isaac Percy (Pittsfield, Mass.) filled the stat sheet with ten points, nine rebounds, four assists and three steals, while senior forward Jackson Zancan (Cumberland, R.I.) and freshman guard Nic Boyd (Portland, Ore.) added ten points apiece.

UMass held the Bears to just five points over a seven-plus minute stretch of the first half as the Corsairs turned a one-point lead (11-10) into a 31-15 advantage. Jadotte tallied eight points during the 20-5 run. Trailing 38-24 with under six minutes remaining in the opening stanza, the Bears closed out the half with a 12-3 run to make it a five-point game (41-36) at the break. Okoh accounted for ten of the 12 points as he drained a pair of three-pointers to go along with a dunk and a layup.

Okoh led all players with 16 points over the first 20 minutes. Jadotte paced the hosts with 12 points in 13 minutes off the bench. UMD connected on 7 of 13 (53.8%) three-point attempts in the first half, while the Bears went 5-for-17 (29.4%) from behind the arc.

The Corsairs came out strong to start the second half and opened up a 15-point lead (56-41) following a Percy three-pointer with 16 minutes remaining. The Bears battled back and capitalized on some poor UMD free throw shooting over the next 3 ½ minutes. An 18-6 BSU run, highlighted by six points from senior center Stanley Pierre-Louis (Roxbury, Mass.), closed the gap to 62-59 with 9:30 left to play. Later in the period, Champagne knocked down a three-pointer to make it a one-point game (71-70) as the clock ticked under six minutes.

A layup by Zancan off an offensive rebound and a pair of free throws from Martins Jr. pushed the UMD lead up to five. Kikuba answered with a layup to pull the Bears back to within three, 75-72, with 5:09 remaining. The two teams came up empty on the next five possessions which resulted in three turnovers and three missed field goals. Kikuba then ended the scoring drought with a layup to pull the visitors to within one, 75-74, with 3:30 showing on the scoreboard. After making back-to-back defensive stops, Halbleib dropped in a layup to give the Bears their first lead, 76-75, since early in the first half.

The Corsairs were unable convert on their next four possessions. Halbleib produced a clutch steal resulting in a Kikuba layup to give the visitors and 78-75 advantage with 1:21 remaining. Freshman forward Louis Jennings (Walpole, Mass.) made 1 of 2 free throws to make it a four-point game with just 20 seconds showing on the scoreboard. Martins Jr. drained a clutch three-pointer to pull the Corsairs to within one with 15 seconds remaining. UMD quickly fouled and Okoh converted both free throws give the Bears an 81-78 lead. Zancan was fouled while attempting a three-pointer with just 1.3 seconds showing on the scoreboard and knocked down the first free throw but missed the second. The third attempt was missed intentionally, and Okoh pulled down the defensive board to secure the victory.

Bridgewater State shot 42.3% (30-71) from the floor, 25.9% (7-27) from three-point range and 66.7% (14-21) at the free throw line. The Bears held a 53-41 rebounding advantage with an 18-13 edge on the offensive glass.

UMass finished with shooting percentages of 39.7% (29-73) from the floor, 44% (11-25) from behind the arc and 52.6% (10-19) at the stripe.

The Bears will compete at the Ed Hockenbury Classic hosted by Norwich University on Saturday and Sunday. Bridgewater will take on Maine-Fort Kent on Saturday night at eight. The Corsairs travel to Tufts University on Saturday afternoon take on the Jumbos at one o'clock.

Notes: The six wins to open the season matches the best start in BSU men's basketball history. The 1986-87 squad also won their first six games.