Salem, Mass. -- Michael Lofton (Mansfield, MA) scored 27 points and added 14 rebounds as the Bears of Bridgewater State escaped Twohig Gymnasium with a dramatic 87-85 victory over the Vikings of Salem State Saturday afternoon. The Bears improve to 5-1 in the Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference (MASCAC) and 12-6 on the year. The Vikings slip to 2-3 in the MASCAC and 10-8 overall.

Anthony Hodges (Worcester, MA) led the Vikings through the first half with 10 points as Salem State went up early holding a 22-20 lead up until the 9:27 mark. Lofton gave Bridgewater State their first lead of the game, 23-22 with a made free throw as the lead changed hands seven times as the teams traded baskets back and forth. A made three-pointer from Tyler DeMelo (East Freetown, MA) gave the Bears a 30-28 advantage with five minutes remaining. DeMelo and Justin Clark (Yarmouth Port, MA) led the way for Bridgewater State as they combined for 14 points in the half. Salem State took advantage of mistakes made by the Bears as they converted 13 points off of 14 Bears' turnovers. The Vikings entered the half atop 38-35 as Nick Grassa (Lynn, MA) – 8 points and Hamed Akanni (Fitchburg, MA) – 8 points, 7 rebounds led the surge.

The intensity picked up immediately in the second half as Lofton tied the game at 47-47 at the 17:06 mark with a power put-back dunk over the Vikings' defense. Lofton went off for 21 points in the second half as he took advantage of the undersized Vikings' defense. With the tough matchup underneath with Lofton, Salem State struggled with closing out on the Bears' shooters as Clark added 11 points in the half, including three three-pointers. However, the Vikings regained the momentum and energized the crowd after a thundering put-back dunk by freshmen forward Drew Healy (Lowell, MA) that brought Salem State to within two with 12:24 remaining. Freshmen guard Shaquan Murray (Boston, MA) motivated his team with his outstanding effort late in the second half as he contributed with 15 points off the bench. However, with the focus on Lofton, Clark was busy knocking down trey's including three's in back-to-back possessions to push the Bears' lead to 79-72 with 3:24 on the clock. Bryan Ortiz (Salem, MA) kept the Vikings alive with a desperation three that brought Salem State to within three with twenty seconds left. After Lofton made two free throws from an intentional foul, the Vikings marched down the court with seconds left where Grassa knocked down a clutch three-pointer to bring the game to 87-85 in favor of the Bears. However, in the attempt to inbound the ball and end the game, Bridgewater State's Clark was called for a five-second violation in Vikings territory forcing a turnover, and Salem State a chance with three seconds on the clock. With no timeouts and forced to inbound the ball Healy's shot came up short on a mid-range jumper and the Bears secured an 87-85 victory.

Salem State had six players score in double digits, led by Ortiz who finished with 17 points, Healy added 12 points off the bench and Akanni (11 rebounds) and Grassa finished with 14 apiece.

Clark had 16 points on 6-of-10 shooting for Bridgewater State while Kyle Gibson (Franklin, MA) finished with 15 points.

Both teams play again against conference opponent MCLA. The Vikings will test the Trailblazers first on January 27th at 7:30 p.m. then the Bears will see MCLA on January 31st for a 3:00 p.m. tip-off.