BRIDGEWATER, Mass. – Junior forward Michael Lofton (Mansfield, Mass.) matched his career-high with 29 points and senior guard Brendan Monteiro (Brockton, Mass.) added 26 to lead the Bridgewater State University men's basketball team to a 75-70 Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference (MASCAC) victory over visiting Worcester State University on Tuesday night at the Tinsley Center.
The Bears improve to 13-10 on the season and leapfrog over Salem State and into first place in the MASCAC standings with a 7-3 conference mark. Salem (6-3 MASCAC) dropped a 73-63 decision this evening at Westfield State. Worcester slips to 8-13 overall and 5-4 in MASCAC play as the Lancers are in sole possession of fourth place.
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 forward Kyle Gibson (Franklin, Mass.) chipped in with 12 points and eight rebounds as the trio of Lofton, Monteiro and Gibson combined for 67 of the team's 75 points.
Senior forward Dane Jobst (Athol, Mass.) 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 guard Brendan Rios (Easthampton, Mass.) netted 20 points including 17 in the second half alone. Rios finished 4-for-11 from behind the arc and added 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 Marquez McKreith-Collins (Springfield, Mass.) three-pointer. The teams headed to the break with BSU holding a slim 35-33 advantage.
Bridgewater opened the second half with an 11-4 run over the first 4 ½ 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 guard Noris Cuevas-Nova (Amherst, Mass.) made it a one-point game (71-70) as the clock ticked down to 1:35.
Lofton answered with a big tip-in off a missed three-pointer and then forced a turnover out of a Worcester time out. He followed that up by connecting on the front end of a one-on-one to give Bridgewater a 74-70 lead. Monteiro would close out the scoring with a free throw as the Bears hung on for the key conference victory.
Bridgewater connected on 52% (31-60) 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% (25-57) from the floor including 8-for-19 (42%) from behind the arc. The Lancers led in rebounding, 36-31, with a 14-10 advantage on the offensive glass.
Prior to the game, the Bears honored Monteiro and fellow seniors Michael Grandfield (Dartmouth, Mass.) and Brian Grossman (Duxbury, Mass.) as they were playing in their final home regular season game.
The MASCAC schedule resumes for both teams on Saturday afternoon at three. The Bears travel to Fitchburg State University to take on the Falcons, while the Lancers entertain the Owls of Westfield State University.
Notes: With his 29 points, Lofton increased his career scoring total to 936.