NORTH DARTMOUTH, Mass. -- The University of Massachusetts Dartmouth men's basketball team seized the lead for good midway through the first half, and went on to defeat visiting Bridgewater State, 94-82, in a non-conference doubleheader at the Tripp Athletic Center Tuesday evening.
The Corsairs outscored BSC, 22-12, during the final 10 minutes of the first half and took a 42-34 advantage into the halftime break. Sophomore forward V.J. Divine (Brookline, MA/Brookline HS) began the run with a three-pointer that gave UMass Dartmouth a 23-22 lead, then senior center Dan Holbrook (Lexington, MA/Lexington HS/Westfield State) sandwiched a pair of layups around a basket by senior forward Cory Tynes (Springfield, MA/Commerce HS) to make it 29-22 with 6:44 left in the first half.
A 20-6 Corsair run in the second half made it 69-50 with 8:24
remaining. Tynes started the run with a layup and Holbrook added
two more, then freshman forward Brandon Stephens (Dorchester,
MA/Newton North HS), senior guard A.J. Tavares (New Bedford, MA/New
Bedford HS), sophomore forward Matt Walker (Brockton, MA/Brockton
HS) and sophomore guard Tyler Turtoro (Shelton, CT/Shelton HS) all
connected from three-point range.
The Bears fought back, scoring 25 points in a period of 5:50 to cut
the lead to 86-78 with 1:18 remaining. Senior guard Tom Cuddihy
(Scituate, MA) contributed three three-pointers and four free
throws during the run. After a Holbrook layup and three more
Cuddihy free throws, it was 88-81 with 1:01 remaining, but Stephens
and Holbrook each made a pair of free throws in the final minute as
Bridgewater State could come no closer.
Holbrook led the Corsairs with 26 points and 11 rebounds, making 11 of 18 shots from the field and registering his third double double in four games. Tavares and Stephens each scored, while junior guard Reece Freeman (Cambridge, MA/Rindge & Latin HS) contributed 14 assists, three short of the UMass Dartmouth record for a single game.
Cuddihy led the Bears with 22 points, and moved into 16th place on the all-time BSC scoring list with 1167. Junior forward Roland Millien (Stoughton, MA) added 13, while freshman guard Cesar Oliveira (Taunton, MA) and sophomore center Jim Torney (Braintree, MA) each had 10. Millien grabbed seven rebounds, as the teams ended up even on the boards with 38 rebounds apiece.
The Corsairs improved to 4-0 with the victory, while the Bears fell to 1-3 with the defeat. UMass Dartmouth will return to action when they visit Western Connecticut State next Saturday afternoon. BSC will host Wheaton Saturday.