BRIDGEWATER, Mass. – Freshman guard Dante Kikuba (Framingham, Mass.) scored a game-high 22 points to lead the Bridgewater State University men's basketball team to a 99-68 Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference (MASCAC) victory over visiting Framingham State University on Saturday afternoon at the Tinsley Center.
The Bears improve to 15-5 on the season and 5-2 in the MASCAC with their fourth straight win, while the Rams fall to 4-16 overall and 1-6 in conference play. Bridgewater holds a 78-39 advantage in the all-time series which dates back to 1971.
Kikuba connected on 7 of 12 field goal attempts and went 7-for-8 at the free throw line. He also added a game-best nine assists and three steals.
BSU graduate center (Carmel, Ind.) checked in with 18 points, nine rebounds and a game-high four blocked shots. Halbleib was 7-for-8 from the floor and a perfect 4-for-4 at the charity stripe.
The Bears also received ten points, three rebounds and a pair of assists from junior guard Justin Parsons (Portsmouth, R.I.) as well as ten points and three steals in 13 minutes off the bench from sophomore forward Keyth Key (Springfield, Mass.).
Sophomore guard Ivan Nyantenji (Nashua, N.H.) scored 13 points and notched two rebounds and two steals in 16 minutes off the bench for Framingham State. Graduate forward Juran Ligonde (Dedham, Mass. )added 12 points and four rebounds for the Rams, while sophomore forward Joshua-Daniel Okafor (Boston, Mass.) tallied ten points.
Woth the score knotted at 8-8 early in the first half, the Bears reeled off eight straight point capped off by a Halbleib dunk to take the lead for good. After Framingham closed the gap to five (18-13) following a Ligonde layup, Bridgewater used a 12-1 run, highlighted by six points from graduate forward Jordan Wetterlind (Twig, Minn.), to pull ahead, 30-14, with nine minutes left to play in the stanza. A pair of Ligonde free throws at the 5:09 mark made it a nine-point game (32-23) as the Rams tried to seize the momentum. On the ensuing possession, senior center Stanley Pierre-Louis (Roxbury, Mass.) came up with a clutch offensive rebound and put back to jumpstart a 16-5 BSU spurt. Junior forward Peyton Priest (Papillion, Neb.) knocked down a pair of three-pointers during the run as the Bears extended the lead to 20 (48-28). Bridgewater would ultimately take a 52-34 advantage into the break.
Halbleieb paced Bridgewater State with ten first-half points, while Kikuba added nine. Ligonde scored ten points over the first 20 minutes to lead Framingham State.
The Bears shot 60.6% (20-33) from the floor in the first half and went 10-for-11 (90.9%) at the free throw line. The Rams connected on just 33.3% (11-33) of their first-half field goal attempts and converted 9 of 11 (81.8%) at the charity stripe.
The Bears outscored the Rams 19-7 over the first six minutes of the second half to open up a commanding 71-41 lead. Five different players scored for Bridgewater State during the six-minute surge with Kikuba accounting for six of the points. Framingham would get not closer than 23 points the rest of the way while the Bears got up by as much as 31 points including the final score of 99-68.
Bridgewater shot 52.8% (38-72) for the game and a scorching 94.7% (18-19) at the foul line. The BSU defense forced 17 turnovers and held Framingham to 29.2% (19-65) shooting. The Rams finished 25-for-34 (73.5%) at the stripe.
The Bears held the edge in points in the paint (56-22) and points off turnovers (22-11), while second chance points were even at 17 apiece. The BSU bench outscored the Framingham reserves, 43-29.
The MASCAC schedule continues for both teams on Wednesday evening. The Bears travel to Salem State University to take on the Vikings at five o'clock, while the Rams entertain the Owls of Westfield State University at 5:30.