BRIDGEWATER, Mass. – Senior guard Ryan Carney (Easton, Mass.) scored a season-high 30 points and senior forward Rayshon Ward (Fayetteville, N.C.) posted a double-double with 28 points and ten rebounds to lead the Bridgewater State University men's basketball;; team to a 92-81 victory over visiting Wheaton College on Saturday afternoon at the Tinsley Center.
The Bears improve to 2-6 on the season with their second straight win, while the Lyons fall to 3-4.
Carney connected on 8 of 11 field goals including 4-for-5 from behind the arc. He also went 10-for-12 at the free throw line and added three rebounds, six assists and a pair of blocked shots.
Ward, who played all 40 minutes and added two blocks, finished 10-for-16 from the floor, 4-for-7 from three-point range and made all four of his free throw attempts.
BSU senior forward Dimitri St. Louis (Brockton, Mass.) filled the stat sheet with 15 points, nine rebounds, four assists, five steals and two blocks, while sophomore guard Alan Pettway (Worcester, Mass.) added 12 points and five boards.
Bridgewater's five starters combined for 90 of the team's 92 points.
Senior guard Alex DuBrow (Foxboro, Mass.) paced Wheaton with 17 points, five boards, three steals and a game-high seven assists, while freshman forward Aaron Williams (Springfield, Mass.) checked in with 22 points and five rebounds. Senior forward Robby Lowey (Foxboro, Mass.) and freshman guard Alex Carlisle (St. Johnsbury, Vt.) added 16 points and 14 points, respectively, for the Lyons.
Trailing 19-14 with 13 ½ minutes remaining in the first half, the Bears used a 22-6 run over an eight-minute stretch to open up a 36-25 lead. Carney and Ward combined to hit five three-pointers and score 17 points during the spurt. Bridgewater would maintain a lead throughout the remainder of the stanza and took a 45-34 advantage into the break.
Ward tallied 17 points over the first 20 minutes, while Carney added 12. Williams paced the Lyons with 13 first-half points.
Wheaton chipped away at the deficit and closed to within two (70-68) following a three-pointer by DuBrow with 8:12 left to play. The Lyons had three opportunities to tie the game or take the lead but could not convert. The Bears answered with seven straight points from four different players to push the lead back to nine (77-68) with 4:49 remaining. Bridgewater went 13-for-14 from the free throw line over the last four minutes to secure the 92-81 victory.
The Bears shot 52% (28-54) from the floor for the game and finished 27-for-31 (87% at the charity stripe. The Lyons connected on 49% (29-59) of their field goal attempts and went 16-for-20 (80%) at the line.
In upcoming action, the Bears entertain Becker College on Tuesday night at 7:30. The Lyons are off until Friday, December 27th (5:30) when they take on Bridgewater College (Va.) at the College of Staten Island 18th Annual Tournament of Heroes.
Notes: Carney (1,196 pts.) moved into 18th place on the Bears' all-time scoring list….Despite the setback, Wheaton holds a 14-11 advantage in the all-time series.