Men's Basketball Downs Fitchburg, 84-77, in MASCAC Opener

FITCHBURG, Mass. – Senior guard Shawn Yard (Brockton, Mass.) tallied 22 points, four rebounds and six assists to lead the Bridgewater State University men's basketball team to an 84-77 Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference (MASCAC) victory over Fitchburg State University on Saturday afternoon.

The game, which featured seven ties and 21 lead changes, marked the conference opener for both teams as Bridgewater improved to 6-5 (1-0 MASCAC) on the season while Fitchburg slipped to 6-4 (0-1 MASCAC).

The Bears led 30-22 with just under four minutes remaining in the first half.  However, the host Falcons ended the half with a 14-4 run to take a 36-34 lead into the intermission.

The second half was a back-and-forth affair until Bridgewater took the lead for good, 68-67, on a Yard jumper with 4:21 left on the clock.  The Bears would outscore the Falcons 16-10 over the final minutes including knocking down 10 of 13 free throws down the stretch.

After converting just 11 of 28 (39.3%) field goal attempts over the first twenty minutes, the Bears shot a sizzling 61.5% (16-for-26) from the floor in the final stanza.  Bridgewater won despite turning the ball over a season-high 27 times and converting just 22 of 36 (61.1%) free throw attempts.

In addition to Yards solid performance, the Bears also received a double-double effort of 15 points and 12 rebounds from sophomore forward Michael Lofton (Mansfield, Mass.).  Lofton finished 6-for-7 from the floor.  Senior forward Anthony Fortes (Providence, R.I.) added ten points and six points while senior guard Brendan McDonald (Dorchester, Mass.) notched 14 points and sophomore guard Justin Clark (Yarmouth Port, Mass.) came off the bench to score 11 points.  McDonald and Clark combined to shoot 7-for-11 from behind the arc.

Senior center Zach Valliere (Douglas, Mass.) paced the host Falcons with a game-high 25 points to go along with 11 rebounds.  Classmate Tom Henneberry (Lexington, Mass.) chipped in with 13 points, seven rebounds and five assists on the night.

For the game, Bridgewater State shot 50.0% from the field (27-of-54), including 8-of-16 from three point range, while also holding a 46-36 margin on the glass. The Falcons were also consistent, connecting on 29-of-69 shots (42.0%) for the game.

In upcoming action, Bridgewater travels to MASCAC rival Framingham State University on Tuesday for an eight o'clock game with the Rams.  Fitchburg heads to non-conference foe Fisher College on Wednesday (8:00 PM).