PDF
Written by: Phillip St. Pierre
Bentley Men’s Basketball is currently on cruise control, handling their opponents with ease as they won their twelfth and thirteenth consecutive victories by over 20 points.
These were both games that Bentley expected to win as they faced two teams that are struggling to stay above 500. The men’s play was still very impressive nonetheless, as they showed that they will play with the same intensity and desire no matter who they are facing.
Saint Rose traveled to Waltham looking to knock off the Falcons and hand them their third loss of the season, but Bentley soon demolished those hopes as they soared ahead to an 88-67 victory and earned their 12th straight win.
Things were looking good for Bentley as they jumped out early and were leading going into intermission, but the second half was a different story as Saint Rose went on a 17-2 run to pull ahead by two with under 14 minutes left in the game. With plenty of time left, the Falcons buckled down and stopped Saint Rose in their tracks.
In a span of five minutes, the Falcons’ defense was unstoppable, holding Saint Rose to only four points. The offense responded with a run of their own, going from being down by two to up by 17 when it seemed that the Golden Knights had no response for Bentley.
Mike Quinn led the charge, scoring nine during this run, including a big three pointer to give the Falcons the lead. Withthe crowd back in the game, the Falcons did not look back from there on out.
Brian Tracey led the way in the contest with one of his best performances of the year. The junior finished with 24 points, 8 rebounds, and 3 assists as he shot an outstanding 8 for 12 from the field as well as finishing 5 for 6 at the free throw line.
The rest of the starting crew finished in double digits as well, with Mike Quinn adding 14, John Brandt contributing with 13, and Jason Westrol ending the game with 17 points, 6 assists, 5 rebounds, and 2 steals.
Charging ahead with the momentum of the Saint Rose victory, Bentley traveled to New York to face Pace. The game was not much different from the previous in that the Falcons proved to be too much for their opponents with their outstanding defensive play, holding Pace to under 40 percent shooting on the game.
The first half was somewhat close as both teams were trading baskets in the beginning of the game, but Bentley ended the half with a run that put them up 36-27 going into intermission. The second half was a different story, though, as the Falcons erupted and found themselves scoring with ease on their conference rivals.
Pace shrunk the lead multiple times to as little as six points to begin the second half, but that was the closest they would get as the Falcons began firing on all cylinders. Bentley’s defense held Pace scoreless for 10 minutes, and their offense went on a 13-0 run, starting with a four-point play from Mike Quinn that quieted the Pace crowd right down.
With less than 8 minutes left in the game, the Falcons extended their lead to 19 and had broken the game open, holding a 60-41 lead. From there on out, the Falcons coasted to their 18th victory of the season, winning 76-53.
This was Bentley’s 13th consecutive win, and was a game dominated by defense as the Falcons prevented Pace from getting any rhythm whatsoever on offense. Itallowed Bentley to score with few problems as they led a very balanced offensive attack.
Jason Westrol finished with a game high of 23 points. This was a big milestone game for the senior as these points moved him ahead of Tim Forbes for second on Bentley’s all time scoring list.
Following his stellar performances against Saint Rose and Pace, Westrol was rewarded by being named player of week. This was the second time this season that Westrol received the honor as he averaged 20 points, 5.5 rebounds, and 4.5 assists over the two games.
The senior guard became Bentley’s all time leader in games played when he started in the match against Pace, and his 1,771 career points for the Falcons puts him only behind Bill Holden (2,103) as Bentley’s all time scorer.
Westrol is averaging 20 points per game on the season, and is second in the league in steals, as his play is one of the key reasons for an exceptional Bentley team.
Bentley moved up to #12 in the Division II rankings following their victories this week, and is the only Division II East team to appear in the top 25.
These wins were important in that they not only pushed the Falcons up in the Division II rankings, but also propelled the Falcons to be tied for the top spot in the Northeast 10 with a conference record of 13-2.
Bentley and Stonehill have identical conference records, but the Falcons currently have the edge as Bentley boasts an overall record of 18-2, with Stonehill following at 16-4.
The two teams face off in the final game of the regular season, so the Falcons will surely want to respond against the team that handed them their second loss.
Bentley is taking one game at a time and is now looking towards their match with Merrimack at home.
This should be much more of a challenge for the Falcons than the past few games as they are facing a team that is third in the Northeast 10 with a record of 14-4, and are looking solid in their pursuit to be the top team in the conference.
Comments on this entry are closed.