Manchester, N.H. (December 10) -- Despite a second-half rally that cut the lead down to just six, the Assumption College men's basketball team dropped a 77-69 final at Southern New Hampshire University in Northeast-10 Conference play on Wednesday night.

The teams started off evenly over the opening four minutes, with the Hounds jumping ahead 9-6 with 16:27 left on a three from the left wing by sophomore Jack Sullivan (Stony Point, N.Y./Albertus Magnus). SNHU's Rodney Sanders countered with a three from the top of the key to tie the game with 16 minutes left, igniting a 22-0 run over a span of 9:01 that stretched the Penmen lead to 28-9. A basket by Assumption sophomore Kamali Bey (Springfield, Mass./Wilbraham & Monson Academy) ended the run with 7:26 left in the half as he scored on a putback.

The Penmen led by at least 16 over the rest of the half and by as many as 21 at 41-20 after a three from the corner from Max Taylor. Bey knocked down two free throws with 1:08 left in the period to close out the scoring as the Hounds trailed 41-22 at the break.

Bey led the Hounds with 10 points and seven rebounds behind a 4-for-4 showing at the free throw line. Sanders was the top scorer for the Penmen with 17 points as SNHU shot 57.7 percent from the field and 60 percent from three-point land (6-for-10). The Penmen held a 21-18 overall rebounding advantage in the half, while the Hounds owned a 7-2 edge on the offensive glass.

Assumption came out strong to start the second half, embarking on a quick 7-0 run over the first 2:07 that was capped by a baseline layup by Bey that forced a Penmen timeout. After two more Bey free throws cut the lead to 41-31, Elijah Bonsignore scored on a putback to end the 9-0 run. The Penmen followed that with threes by Sanders and BJ Cardarelli though to expand the lead back to 18 at 49-31 with just under 16 minutes remaining.

With the Penmen leading 54-36, junior Karl Ziegler (Annandale, Va./Annandale) sparked an 11-3 Assumption run and the Hounds closed to within 10 at 57-47 midway thru the half. A three from the left side by Sullivan with 7:23 on the clock cut the lead all the way down to seven at 63-56, but five quick points again made it a 12-point deficit at 68-56.

The Hounds kept fighting and with 2:48 left, the lead stood at just six for the Penmen at 70-64 after two more free throws by Ziegler. Sparking the run was a dunk from junior Terrance Bobb-Jones (Wilmington, Del./Delcastle-Voc Tech) with 4:58 remaining, which was set up by a steal on the defensive end.

The Penmen led by at least seven over the remainder of the game though, en route to the eight-point win.

Bey led the Hounds with a career-high 25 points to go along with 13 rebounds for the double-double. Bobb-Jones also posted a double-double with 12 points and 10 boards, along with 10 points from Ziegler and 12 from Sullivan.

Sanders led the Penmen with 28 points, along with 19 points from Bonsignore and a team-high 11 rebounds by Devin Gilligan.

With the loss, Assumption drops to 4-5 overall and 2-4 in Northeast-10 play, while Southern New Hampshire improves to 6-2 overall and 5-1 in the league.

Assumption is now idle until December 20-21 as the Hounds travel to Philadelphia University for a pair of games at the East Region Classic. Assumption takes on Holy Family on Saturday, followed by Philadelphia on Sunday as both games begin at 3 p.m.

For the latest on Assumption College Athletics, follow the Hounds via social media on Twitter, Facebook and YouTube. For more information, contact the Office of Athletic Communications at 508-767-7240.