Falcons Withstand Bears In MASCAC Victory

Fitchburg, Mass. – The Fitchburg State Men's Basketball team earned a hard fought 73-69 victory over the Bears of Bridgewater State this evening in Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference (MASCAC) action from the Parkinson Gymnasium.

The Basics

Score: Fitchburg State 73, Bridgewater State 69
Records: Fitchburg State (6-16, 4-7 MASCAC), Bridgewater State (4-17, 2-8 MASCAC)

How It Happened

Fitchburg State took an early 5-2 advantage on a layup from sophomore Trevian Hinson (Tampa, Fla.) and a three pointer from junior Bryan Tyrie (Hanson, Mass.) before Bridgewater State answered with a pair of free-throws by freshman Quinton Champagne (Wrentham, Mass.) (5-4).

The Bears would knot the score at 7-7 as sophomore Keyth Key (Springfield, Mass.) sank one from the charity stripe, but the Falcons regained the lead, going on a 7-0 run, capped by a Tajahn Joyner (Hadley, Mass.) layup for the 14-7 edge.

The Green and Gold, pushed its lead to 21-17 with Hinson connecting on a jumper before the Bears cut the deficit to 21-20 with junior Jabray Griffin (Orlando, Fla.) netting a jumper. Fitchburg State responded with five straight points as newcomer Frederick Siayor (Worcester, Mass.) buried a three ball and Tyrie notched a jumper for the 28-21 lead.

Bridgewater State chipped away at the deficit though, closing the half on an 8-2 run, with baskets from Griffin, Champagne and senior Alan Pettway (Worcester, Mass.) to make the score 30-29 going in to the break.

Following the intermission, the two teams traded buckets as Joyner connected for Fitchburg State, while junior Stanley Pierre-Louis (Roxbury, Mass.) hit for Bridgewater State (32-31). The Falcons upped their lead (46-36) with baskets from junior Mikal Garcia (Fresno, Calif.), sophomore Quincy Taylor (Boston, Mass.) and a three pointer from sophomore Nathaniel Semedo (Bridgewater, Mass.), but the Bears reduced the lead to 48-44 with a Pierre-Louis layup and a Joran Wetterlind (Twig, Minn.) jumper.

The Green and Gold extended the margin to 55-48 as Siayor notched a jumper before Wetterlind registered put back layup for the visitors to a cut the lead to 55-50. Fitchburg State answered again, building a 60-50 advantage with Garia hitting a jumper, but the Bears battled back, going on an 8-0 run, keyed by a Champagne three pointer to make the score 63-61.

The hosts responded with a 5-0 stretch as Joyner notched a layup and two free-throws before Bridgewater State cut the deficit to just two (71-69) when Champagne hit a layup. The Falcons secured the victory however when Saiyor connected on a pair from the charity stripe, resulting in the 73-69 final.

Inside the Numbers

• Falcons were paced by Siayor with a game best 17 points, three boards, one assist, one block and two steals
• Q. Taylor added a double-double of 14 points and 14 caroms as well as two assists, one steal and two blocks
• For the Bears, Champagne netted a team-leading 14 points, five rebounds, two assists and five steals
• Wetterlind chipped in with a double-double of 12 points and 11 boards to go along with four assists
• 140th meeting between two schools with Falcons 46-94 all-time vs the Bears
• Fitchburg State shot 29-for-60 (48.3%) from the field and (6-for-21) 28.6% from three point land
• Bridgewater State finished 26-of-77 (33.8%) overall and (4-for-22) 18.2% from beyond the arc
• Falcons finished with a narrow 45-44 margin on the glass

Up Next

Falcons return to action on Saturday as they travel to Westfield State to take on the Owls for a MASCAC bout, starting at 2:00 PM. Bears will host the Trailblazers of MCLA on Friday for a conference clash at 7:30 PM.