Bridgewater, MA --- Bridgewater State junior Michael Lofton (Mansfield, MA) matched his career-high with 29 points and senior Brendan Monteiro (Brockton, MA) added 26 to lead the Bears to a 75-70 victory over Worcester State in MASCAC men's basketball action this evening at the Tinsley Center.

BSU improve to 13-10 on the season and leapfrog over Salem State and into first place in the league standings with a 7-3 conference mark. Worcester State slips to 8-13 overall and 5-4 in MASCAC play as the Lancers are in sole possession of fourth place.

The setback snaps a five-game winning streak for the Blue and Gold.

Lofton was 11 for 16 from the floor and 7 for 10 at the free throw line while adding nine rebounds and three blocked shots.  Monteiro finished 10 for 18 from the field. Junior Kyle Gibson (Franklin, MA) chipped in with 12 points and eight rebounds.

Senior Dane Jobst (Athol, MA) paced the visiting Lancers with 25 points and eight rebounds.  Jobst went 10 for 14 from the floor with a pair of three-pointers.  Junior Brendan Rios (Easthampton, MA) netted 20 points including 17 in the second half alone. Rios jacked four trey's while adding seven rebounds and four assists.

Bridgewater led 35-27 late in the first half, but saw that lead evaporate when the Blue and Gold closed out the stanza with a 6-0 run highlighted by a freshman Marquez McKreith-Collins (Springfield, MA) three-pointer. The teams headed to the break with BSU holding a slim 35-33 advantage.

Bridgewater State opened the second half with an 11-4 run over the first 4½ minutes. The Bears lead ballooned to as much as nine points (50-41) at the 12:49 mark. Sparked by ten points from Rios, the Lancers responded with an 11-2 spurt to tie the game at 52-52 with 9:07 left to play.

The next five-plus minutes saw one tie and three lead changes with a Jobst layup making it a one-point game in favor of the Bears with 3:55 remaining.  Lofton keyed a 6-0 surge with a lay-in off an offensive board followed by a steal and breakaway dunk. Monteiro finished the run with a driving layup to give the hosts a 71-64 edge with 2:35 on the scoreboard.

The Lancers would not go down quietly as back-to-back trifectas by Rios and freshman Noris Cuevas-Nova (Amherst, MA) made it a one-point game (71-70) as the clock ticked down to 1:35.

Lofton answered with a tip-in off a missed three-pointer and then forced a turnover out of a Worcester Sate time out. He then hit the front end of a one-on-one to give the hosts a 74-70 lead. Monteiro closed out the scoring with a free throw as the Bears hung on for the conference victory.

Bridgewater State connected on 52 percent (31-for-60) of its field goal attempts for the game and finished 12-for-16 from the charity stripe.  The Bears dominated points in the paint, 46-28, held a 19-10 edge in points off turnovers and committed just ten miscues.

Worcester shot a modest 46 percent (25-for-57) from the floor including 8-for-19 (42 percent) from behind the arc. The Lancers led in rebounding, 36-31, with a 14-10 advantage on the offensive glass.

The MASCAC schedule resumes for both teams on Saturday afternoon at 3 o'clock. The Bears travel to Fitchburg State University to take on the Falcons while the Lancers entertain the Owls of Westfield State University.

Some Portions Of Release Courtesy Of Bridgewater State Sports Information