Providence, R.I.--The Rhode Island College men's basketball team dropped a 71-65 decision against Bridgewater State in a non-conference contest played at The Murray Center on Tuesday evening.

RIC (2-2) was paced by sophomore guard Jimmy Fritzson (Sharon, MA) with 15 points and seven rebounds, while senior forward Domonique Bull (Worcester, MA) added 15 points, six boards and two assists in the setback. Junior guard Roosevelt Shider (Meriden, CT) notched eight points, four rebounds and three assists for the Anchormen.

Senior guard Fawaz Mass (Taunton, MA) led the way for Bridgewater State (3-1) with a game-high 22 points, five rebounds, five steals and two assists, while junior guard Rocky DeAndrade (Mansfield, MA) contributed 15 points and five boards. Senior guard Patrick McGuinness (New City, NY) rounded out the double-figure scorers for BSU with 12 points and four rebounds in the victory.

Rhode Island College controlled the action early and took its first double-digit lead of the contest when a three-pointer by Fritzson made the score 23-11 with 9:37 left in the first half. Bridgewater climbed back to within nine points on a layup by DeAndrade with 3:08 remaining in the stanza to trim the lead to nine, 33-24. That would be as close as the Bears would get, however, as RIC took an 11-point, 40-29, lead heading into the locker room at halftime. RIC forced Bridgewater into 10 first half turnovers with the Bears shooting just 38.5 percent (10-for-26) from the field.

The visiting Bears continued to make a comeback in the early stages of the second half and used a 22-10 run, capped by a three-pointer by senior forward Greg Romanko (Mansfield, MA) with 12:46 left in regulation, to put Bridgewater State ahead by one, 51-50. RIC responded with 10-4 run of its own and took a 60-55 advantage on a layup by sophomore forward Justin Campbell (New Haven, CT) with 7:43 on the clock. Another Bridgewater State run knotted the game 65-65 on a three-pointer by DeAndrade with 2:38 remaining. The visiting Bears then closed out the game on a 6-0 run, including four points from the free-throw strike to secure the 71-65 victory.

RIC shot 42.2 percent (27-for-64) from the field, 33.3 percent (7-for-21) from behind the three-point arc and 80 percent (4-for-5) from free throw line. Bridgewater State shot 42.3 percent (22-for-52) from the field, 26.1 from the three-point line (6-for-23) and 77.8 percent (21-for-27) from free throw line. RIC held a 36-35 advantage in rebounds for the contest, while Bridgewater State forced the Anchormen into 21 turnovers.

In upcoming action, Rhode Island College will host Brandeis on Sunday, Nov. 27 (noon).