NORTH ADAMS, Mass. – Senior forward Dimitri St. Louis (Bridgewater, Mass.) equaled his career-high with 28 points to lead the visiting Bridgewater State University men's basketball team to a 78-67 victory over MCLA in Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference (MASCAC) action on Saturday afternoon at the Amsler Campus Center Gymnasium.

The Bears improve to 7-12 on the season and 4-3 in MASCAC play, while the host Trailblazers (13-6, 6-1 MASCAC) suffered their first conference setback of the season.

The Bears never trailed as they jumped out to a 14-2 lead after six minutes of play.  MCLA would claw back, however, and trimmed the margin to just 20-15 after a Marius Turner (Hampton, Va.) layup with 8:24 left in the first half.  The Bears would eventually lead 29-24 at halftime as MCLA shot just 30% from the floor over the first 20 minutes.  St. Louis tallied nine points to lead all scorers in the opening stanza.

Coming out of the locker room, the Bears quickly extended the lead to double figures. After the Trailblazers trimmed the deficit to three (29-26), BSU senior guard Ryan Carney (Easton, Mass.) scored five straight points, including a three-pointer. Sophomore guard Alan Pettway (Worcester, Mass.) then followed with another trifecta as the visitors extended the lead to 37-26 with 17:53 remaining.

MCLA was still in the contest with 9 ½ minutes left to play as they trailed just 54-46. The Bears, however, exploded on a 14-3 spurt to seize control of the game. St. Louis scored nine of the 14 points during the run as Bridgewater pulled ahead, 68-49, with just under six minutes left to play. The lead would grow to as many as 21 (74-53) as MCLA was unable to mount much of a threat from there.

St. Louis was tremendous in the second half as he tallied 19 of his 28 points in the closing twenty minutes. He finished 9-for-18 from the floor and added eight rebounds, two steals and a blocked shot Carney shook off a tough first half by scoring all 18 of his points after the break.  He went 7-for-18 from the floor.  Pettway ended with 16 points on 6 of 8 shooting including 3-for-5 from behind the arc. Senior forward Rayshon Ward (Fayetteville, N.C.) finished with game-high totals of 19 rebounds, five assists and three blocks.

The Bears shot 40% (28-70) from the floor in the win including a 56% (18-32) clip in the pivotal second half. Bridgewater was also 13-for-17 (76%) at the free throw line.

MCLA was paced by Turner's 12 points off the bench. Junior guard Noah Yearsley (Averill Park, N.Y.) added 11 points while freshman center Chris Becker (Lake George, N.Y.) finished with ten.

The Trailblazers couldn't overcome the tough shooting night as they ended the game at 39% (28-71) from the floor and just 41% (7-17) at the charity stripe.

The MASCAC schedule continues for both teams next Wednesday night at 7:30. The Bears entertain the Vikings of Salem State University, while the Trailblazers travel to Fitchburg State University to take on the Falcons.

Notes: BSU Head Coach Joe Farroba recorded career victory #395….Ward (1,286 pts.) moved into 15th place on the Bears' all-time scoring