DUDLEY, Mass. – Freshman Jerome Cunningham (Westbury, N.Y.) recorded a double-double with 17 points and 12 rebounds in Nichols College's 101-86 win over Western New England Tuesday night in Commonwealth Coast Conference men's basketball action at the Nichols Athletic Center.

Sophomore Marcos Echevarria (Lynn, Mass.) and freshman DeAnte Bruton (New London, Conn.) each dropped in 27 points as the Bison won their third-straight contest. Senior Devin Stallings (Waterford, Conn.) chipped in with 12 points and six boards as Nichols canned 31 of its 40 free throws and knocked down 51 percent of its shots (31-of-61).

Senior Mike Gelineau (Waltham, Mass.) came off the bench to score a team-high 16 points for the Golden Bears – including four 3-pointers. Sophomore Mikey Pettway (Bridgeport, Conn.) filled the stat sheet with nine points, eight dimes, five rebounds, and two steals while classmate Tyler Johnson (Vernon, Conn.) connected on six of his seven field goals and finished with 14 points.

Western New England shot 45 percent and was a perfect 9-of-9 from the charity stripe. Nichols held a slim 40-38 edge on the glass, including eight from senior Nate Tardy (Moodus, Conn.). Freshman Mike McCourt (Lincoln, R.I.) snared a team-high seven boards for the Golden Bears.

The visitors led by as many as seven midway through the first half (31-24) before the Bison closed the stanza on a 23-9 run to take a 47-40 halftime lead. Bruton made 7-of-11 from the field and led all scorers with 18 first-half points while Echevarria netted 11 points. Johnson was a perfect 4-of-4 and paced the Golden Bears with 10 points.

Baskets from Stallings, Bruton, and Cunningham early in the second half helped the Bison extended their lead to 14 points (58-44). Echevarria banged a three at 11:09 to give his team a 21-point edge at 73-52. After the Golden Bears climbed to within 14 points on two occasions, Echevarria canned another triple with 5:18 to go that again gave the Bison a 21-point advantage (94-73).

All-Time Series
Tonight's contest marked the 37th all-time meeting between Nichols College and Western New England University. The win runs the Bison's win streak against the Golden Bears to four, and they now lead the series, 24-13.