THE BASICS:

- Score: Bentley 80, Assumption 72

- Record: Bentley (4-1, 2-1 NE-10), Assumption (2-3, 2-1 NE-10)

- Location: Waltham, Mass. (Dana Center)

The Lead: Assumption trailed by 18 points midway through the first half but regrouped to close within one point in the final 20 minutes. However, the Hounds were never able to draw even as they eventually fell 80-72 on Wednesday evening in conference action on the road.

HOW IT HAPPENED:

- Bentley came out firing and jumped out to 13-4 lead in the opening four minutes before extending its advantage to 24-6 with 10:42 remaining in the half. Declan Soukup (Melbourne, Australia / Hallam Senior College) ended the run 20 seconds later and Damien Rance (Melbourne, Australia / Pope John XXIII) eventually closed the gap to 24-13 on a layup with 8:44 left.

- Assumption trailed 32-15 with just five minutes remaining, but came alive over the final five minutes, outscoring the Falcons 12-3. A triple from Karl Ziegler (Annandale, Va. / Annandale) cut the deficit to just 32-27 with 1:26, though Bentley countered with a three of its own for a 35-27 contest at the break.

- Four minutes into the second, Branislav Vujadinovic (Belgrade, Serbia / St. Joseph) trimmed it to 40-37 on a steal and fastbreak layup, and then made it 46-43 on a jumper with 13:12 remaining. Less than two minutes later, Ziegler cut the deficit to 48-47 on a layup.

- Assumption was unable to tie the game and five straight by Bentley made it 53-47 midway through the period. The Hounds again pulled within three, 56-53, but a 7-0 spurt by the Falcons extended their advantage to 63-53. Assumption did pull within six multiple times in the final minute but Bentley hit its free throws in the final minute for the 80-72 final.

INSIDE THE NUMBERS:

- The Hounds shot 48.4 percent from the floor in the contest while limiting Bentley to 41.7 percent overall. The Falcons did shoot 10 for 22 from beyond the arc while the visitors connected on 5 of 12 from downtown.

- Assumption owned a 37-31 rebounding edge and dominated in the paint 42-16 while getting 14 points from the bench and turning the ball over 12 times.

- Five players scored in double figures, led by Ziegler with 15 points and seven rebounds. Rance added 13 points and seven boards while Justin Tuckson (Stafford, Va. / Christ Chapel Academy) chipped in 13 points, four assists and three rebounds.

- Soukup finished with 11 points, four assists and one steal while Vujadinovic came off the bench for a career-best ten points, five rebounds and one steal.

- Ryan Richmond led Bentley with 22 points and four rebounds on 8 of 14 shooting while Brandon Wheeler had 16 points, six rebounds and four assists.

UP NEXT:

- The Hounds return to action on Nov. 30 when they host Southern New Hampshire in Laska at 7:30 pm.

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