Men's Basketball Cruises to 107-83 Win at Ed Hockenbury Classic

NORTHFIELD, Vt. – Senior guard Precious Okoh (Brockton, Mass.) scored a game-high 22 points, including 16 in the first half, to lead the Bridgewater State University men's basketball team to a convincing 107-83 victory over Maine-Fort Kent on Saturday night in the semifinal round of the 25th Annual Ed Hockenbury Classic hosted by Norwich University.

Fourteen different players scored for the Bears who improve to 7-0 on the year as they eclipsed the program record for most consecutive wins to start a season. The Bengals fall to 2-8 with the setback.

Okoh connected on 8 of 11 field goals including 4-for-7 from behind the arc in just 20 minutes of action. He was also 2-for-2 at the free throw line and added three rebounds, two assists and a game-high six steals.

Graduate center Emerson Halbleib (Carmel, Ind.) checked in with 15 points on 7 of 9 shooting to along with seven rebounds (five offensive). The Bears also received 11 points and five boards from sophomore guard Quinton Champagne (Wrentham, Mass.), and ten points and pair of assists from junior guard Justin Parsons (Portsmouth, R.I.). Champagne knocked down 3 of 5 three-point field goals, while Parsons went 3-for-4 from behind the arc.

Bridgewater State led from start to finish. Up 11-9 early in the first half, the Bears outscored the Bengals 38-8 over the next 11 minutes to take control of the game. Okoh (12), Halbleib (8), Champagne (6) and Parsons (6) combined for 32 of the 38 points during the run.

Bridgewater held a 68-25 lead at the break and Halbleib's three-pointer to open the second half gave the Bears their biggest lead of the game at 46 points (71-25).

Junior forward Henrique Andrade (Primavera do Leste, Brazil) paced Fort Kent with 19 points, seven rebounds and a pair of blocked shots, Andrade went 8-for-9 from the floor and 3-for-3 at the free throw line. Sophomore guard Jordan Guerrero (Miami, Fla.) added 16 points, four rebounds and a pair of assists for the Bengals, while sophomore guard Nate Nuynh (Houston, Texas) contributed 14 points, four rebounds and three assists, and freshman guard Peter Wilson (Everett, Wash.) tallied ten points.

The Bears shot 52.4% (45-82) for the game including 16-for-35 (45.7%) from behind the arc. Bridgewater held a 45-26 rebounding advantage with a 17-3 edge on the offensive glass.

The Bengals finished with shooting percentages of 50.8% (33-65) from the floor, 31.8% (7-22) from three=point range and 83.3% (10-12) at the free throw line.

The 25th Annual Ed Hockenbury Classic continues on Sunday afternoon. The Bears will take on host Norwich in the tournament championship game at three o'clock, while the Bengals will face New England College in the consolation game at one.

Notes: The 107 points marked a season-high total for the Bears. It is also the most points scored in a game since a 121-77 victory over Maine-Augusta on December 4, 2016, also at the Hockenbury Classic…Okoh has scored at least 19 points in each of the Bears' seven games this season and has reached the 20-point mark five times.