DUDLEY, Mass. – Freshman DeAnte Bruton (New London, Conn.) scored a career-high 36 points in Nichols College's 97-92 loss to Becker College Monday night in non-conference men's basketball action at the Nichols Athletic Center.
Bruton – who was named Commonwealth Coast Conference (CCC) Rookie of the Week earlier today – shot 13-of-26 from the field (8-of-10 FT). Classmate Jerome Cunningham (Westbury, N.Y.) chipped in with eight points, 10 rebounds, and two blocks while sophomore Marcos Echevarria (Lynn, Mass.) scored 20 points.
Junior Samuel Durodola (Rosedale, N.Y.) finished one rebound shy of a double-double as he poured in 27 points (10-of-18 FG) and snared nine rebounds. Sophomore Kareem Davis (Lowell, Mass.) added 24 points (10-of-11 FT) and freshman Antonio White, Jr. (Middletown, Conn.) came off the bench and filled the stat sheet with 18 points, five rebounds, and four assists.
The Bison opened up a 12-point first half lead following a Bruton layup at 6:29. The Hawks – who shot 58 percent in the opening stanza – closed the half on a 21-6 run to take a 42-39 lead to the locker room. Bruton led all scorers with 17 first-half points while Davis paced Becker with 13. Nichols canned 45 percent of its shot attempts.
Becker opened the second half much the way it closed the first, scoring 28 of the first 44 points to build a 70-55 lead. The Bison scored the next 11 points to climb to within four (70-66) behind seven points from Bruton. Not to be outdone, the Hawks answered with a 14-5 run to regain a 13-point lead at 84-71 following a layup by Durodola with 3:30 on the clock.
The Hawks shot 55 percent from the field and rattled home 24 of their 28 free throws attempts (86 percent). They also made 7-of-14 from behind the three-point line. Nichols was equally as impressive from the charity stripe, sinking 14 of their 16 attempts (88 percent), and held a 33-29 edge on the glass.
All-Time Series
Tonight's contest marked the 17th all-time meeting between Becker College and Nichols College and first since the 2009-10 campaign. The win snapped a five-game losing streak for the Hawks, but they still trail the series 14-3.
Next Games
Nichols (2-2) – Wednesday, November 30 vs Roger Williams, 7:30 p.m.
Becker (2-3) – Thursday, December 1 @ Clark (MA), 5:30 p.m.