WALTHAM, Mass. – Two of the top teams in Northeast-10 Conference men's basketball will square off Wednesday night at Bentley University's Dana Center with the Falcons paired against first-place St. Michael's College. The 7:30 pm game will be streamed over the NE10 NOW digital network.
The game was originally slated to be played Tuesday but was rescheduled due to the forecasted snow.
Bentley, 16-8 overall and 11-6 NE10 following Saturday's thrilling come-from-behind 101-98 double-OT win at Assumption, is tied for second in the conference, along with Adelphi University.
St. Michael's, which leads the conference by three games with five to play, is seeking its first Northeast-10 regular season title since 2001. The Purple Knights are 18-5 overall, 14-3 NE10 and a sparkling 10-2 on the road.
The comeback from 16 down at Assumption Saturday gave the Falcons their third three-game winning streak of the season. It also included wins over Adelphi and fourth-place Southern New Hampshire.
In the previous meeting of the Falcons and Purple Knights this season, St. Michael's prevailed 80-75 in a back-and-forth contest. Bentley led by as many as 18 in the first half, St. Michael's was in front by 16 with under eight to play and the visiting Falcons drew close late with a 19-8 run.
For Bentley, sophomore guard Cash McClure (Readfield, Maine/Maranacook HS) had a 23-point, 11-rebound double-double on 10-of-13 shooting and senior guard Zach Laput (Beacon Falls, Conn./Notre Dame HS) added 22. Juniors Jhamyl Fricas and CJ Crews sparked St. Michael's with nine three-pointers and a combined 41 off the bench.
Five Falcons scored in doubles at Assumption Saturday, Bentley's first double-overtime victory since Dec. 2011. Sophomore forward Joe Carroll (Cedar Grove, N.J./Don Bosco Prep) had a career game off the bench, with 26 points while shooting 57 percent from the floor, hitting two treys and making eight of ten free throws, McClure also came up big with his 24 points matching his best as a collegian.
Laput, the number two scorer in the conference this season and number 13 on the program's all-time list with 1,529 points, had a 17-point, 11-rebound double-double at Assumption. He's averaging 19.8 points and 7.1 rebounds this season.
Also in doubles for the Falcons this season are McClure at 13.6, graduate wing Kellan Bochenek (Kettering, Ohio/Fairmont HS) at 13.1 and senior guard Aaron Latham (Glastonbury, Conn./Glastonbury HS) at 11.6.
Positive differentials of 90 more three-pointers and 58 more free throws than their opponents have resulted in St. Michael's having its best season in decades. Those are two categories that coach Jay Lawson's Falcons have also excelled as they have made 78 more threes and 74 more free throws.
The Purple Knights are led by senior guard Romar Reid and sophomore guard Darrel Yepdo. Reid averages 16.7 points, Yepdo follows at 15.8 and the two have combined for 238 free throws.
Bentley leads the all-time series between the two teams, 56-32, but the two programs have split the last four meetings.
Bentley will be on the road Saturday for a 3:30 game at The College of Saint Rose.
