WORCESTER, Mass. --- Bridgewater State sophomore Michael Lofton (Mansfield, MA) finished with 15 points and 16 rebounds, including the game-tying, buzzer-beating layup in regulation, as he helped lift the Bears to a 78-77 comeback triumph in overtime over host Worcester State in MASCAC men's basketball action this evening.
The come-from-behind victory marked the 299th career coaching win for BSU skipper Joe Farroba. Farroba has posted a 299-256 mark (.539) in 21 seasons with the Bears.
With Bridgewater State (11-12, 5-6 MASCAC) down as many as 21 points with 8:01 remaining in regulation (62-41), the visitors stepped up their game with a tenacious full-court man defense and outscored the Lancers, 31-10, to close out the half.
In the spurt, junior Brendan Monteiro (Brockton, MA/Catholic Memorial) keyed the rally with 14 points – including 12 consecutive over a 2½ minute stretch to help the Bears trail 70-67 with 1:03 left.
Worcester State (11-13, 4-7 MASCAC) missed consecutive opportunities at the charity stripe with the double-digit edge with under five minutes to play while they also committed 10 of their 30 miscues for the contest and allowed BSU to net 19 points off of turnovers.
In the final 60 seconds of the stanza, Lofton equalized the game at 70-70 with 21 ticks left on a dramatic tip-in.
Lancer junior Robert Hunter (St. Louis, MO) then used some slick dribble penetration to give his squad the two point cushion, but Lofton came right back and set the stage for the extra session with a lay-up as time expired.
In overtime, Lofton gave the Bears the early two-point margin with a pair of free throws before WSU freshman Alex Lopez (Springfield, MA/Commerce) finally answered with two of his own to tie up the game 74-74 with 3:11 remaining.
After Monteiro canned the front end of a bonus try on Bridgewater State's next series, Lopez helped the hosts respond with a field goal for the 76-75 edge.
With 1:10 left in the frame, Lofton sank a lay-up to regain the lead, but Lopez came right back and tied up the game, 77-77, just five seconds later with one point at the charity stripe.
The two squads then traded possessions as the Bears missed a trey while the Lancers wasted an opportunity in the paint.
Bridgewater State, however, had a chance at redemption with 11 ticks on the clock with sophomore Justin Clark (Yarmouth Port, MA) at the line, following a foul after their missed lay-up. Clark failed to convert the first, but he drilled the second for the 78-77 edge.
Lopez had the ball in the waning moments, but he was denied when senior Shawn Yard (Brockton, MA) registered a key block on a 10-foot elbow jumper to help seal up the win for the visitors.
The opening frame featured five lead changes and a trio of ties, but the hosts emerged with the 33-29 margin at the intermission as the Lancers doubled up their opponents with a 13-6 skein to close out the period.
Worcester State picked up where they left off to open up the second stanza. The Blue and Gold opened the frame with a 12-3 surge to lead 45-31 just five minutes into the half.
Near the midway point, Yard dropped in a pair of free throws to help the Bears trail by 10 (49-39), but the Blue and Gold went on an impressive 11-0 run to post their largest lead of the contest at 62-41.
Monteiro finished with a squad-best 17 points off a 7-for-11 effort with a pair of threes while Yard chipped in with 16 points, seven assists, five boards and four swipes. Fourth-year Anthony Fortes (Providence, RI/Proctor Academy) added 13 points and six caroms and Clark recorded nine.
For the Lancers, Hunter poured in a season-best 29 points with six rebounds. Junior Dane Jobst (Athol, MA) tallied his 16th double-double with 11 points and 18 boards to post a season total of 287 to equal the seventh-highest total in club history (Jim Ridick – 1970-71).
Lopez pitched in with 11 points and eight helpers as senior Kyle Ferreira (Westport, MA) ended with 10 points and nine assists.
Worcester State led in several categories including the paint (52-38), the backboards (42-40) and they used 17 swipes to create 28 Bear miscues.
The Blue and Gold also finished with a 47 percent effort from the floor (32-for-68), but only made nine of their 20 bids from the free throw line (45 percent).
The Bears netted nearly half their total points off of turnovers (34-29) and almost one-quarter came from second chance points (17-8) as both teams were even in offensive boards (14-14).
BSU finished with a 41 percent clip from the field (41 percent) – including 49 percent in the second stanza (17-for-35) while they hit seven trifectas and were 13-for-17 from the charity stripe (77 percent).
Ferreira and classmate Monte Goodwin (Boston, MA/Belmont) were honored for playing in their final home games of their careers on "Senior Day" in a brief pre-game ceremony.
During halftime, Hall of Famer Paul Welcome sank the final shot in the gymnasium off a bounce-pass in the paint by Bert Bolduc in a celebration of the "Last Shot" in the Lancer Gym. Welcome netted the first field goal when the doors first opened in January of 1961.
The two squads end their regular seasons with road games on Saturday. Worcester State heads to Salem State for a 5:30 contest while the Bears head to MCLA for a 3 o'clock match-up. A BSU win over the Trailblazers, coupled with a Fitchburg State loss to Westfield State, would give the Bears the fourth seed in next week's MASCAC Tournament and a first round home game.