Bridgewater, MA --- The WPI men's basketball team moved to 5-0 on the season with a commanding 84-65 win over Bridgewater State in the BSU Cave Classic Championship game on Saturday afternoon at the Tinsley Center. The Bears dip to 2-2 with the non-conference loss. 

WPI's John Adams (Douglas, MA) earned Tournament MVP honors, collecting his second-straight double-double. Donovan Sevilla (San Ramon, CA) earned an All-Tournament nod, as did Josh Campbell (Plymouth, MA) from Bridgewater State. Logan Wendell (Bradford, VT) of Ithaca and Josh Zangerie (Wappingers Falls, NY) of Johnson & Wales rounded out the All-Tournament honors, as the Bombers beat the Wildcats, 93-70 in the consolation game.

The Engineers are 5-0 for the second straight season and tenth time under Head Coach Chris Bartley. Bridgewater State came into the game averaging over 100 points per contest, but the WPI defense held the Bears to just 65 points on 23-58 (39.7%) shooting. 

The WPI offense shot 50.7% (34-67) from the field, led by 26 points from Adams. The senior added 10 rebounds and six assists to collect his third double-double in five games this season. Sevilla added 19 points, while Aidan Callahan (Rowley, MA) was one assist shy of a double-double, finishing with 13 points and nine assists. J.R. Newman (Havertown, PA) chipped in 10 points, while Brett Marelli (Hampton, NH) had six and nine rebounds. 

For Bridgewater State, Josh Campbell (Plymouth, MA) led the squad with 11 points, while Justin Parsons (Portsmouth, RI) added 10 points and six boards. Zach Taylor (Quincy, MA) tallied nine points with six rebounds while Louis Jennings (Walpole, MA) had nine points. Dante Kikuba (Framingham, MA) and Emerson Halbleib (Carmel, IN) each tallied eight points with Halbleib pulling down a team-high seven rebounds. 

A high-scoring first half saw both teams make runs. WPI opened the game on a 7-2 surge, but BSU battled back to tie the game at 10-10 with five minutes gone. Five straight Adams points midway through the half game the Engineers a 20-17 advantage, but again the Bears tied the frame, with a Zach Taylor lay-up making it 26-26 with 7:50 left. 

From there, Adams scored eight straight points, sparking an 11-2 Engineers run that gave WPI its largest lead at 37-28 with 5:09 remaining in the half. Bridgewater then responded with a 9-3 surge to close the frame by trimming the Engineers' halftime advantage to 40-37. 

The hosts erased the deficit early in the second half, with back-to-back buckets putting them up 41-40. WPI quickly answered and went back up four (49-45) on a Callahan jumper with 13:20 on the clock. After BSU cut the lead to two, the Engineers began to build their lead back up. A 24-5 run spanning seven minutes followed, as WPI went up 21 points with 6:33 remaining. Sevilla led the visitors with 14 points during the surge. 

Bridgwater State got the deficit down to 15 points (75-60) on a Jennings jumper with 3:50 to play. However, the WPI offense did not let up, as the Engineers closed out the 1-point victory. 

WPI returns to the court on Monday night at Fitchburg State, tipping off at 6pm. Bridgewater State next plays on Tuesday at Rhode Island College at 7:30pm.