WALTHAM, Mass. – The Pace University men's basketball team fell to Bentley University at the Dana Athletic Center on Wednesday in Northeast-10 Conference action by a score of 84-59 after a big second-half run for the Falcons.
HOW IT HAPPENED
FIRST HALF
- Bentley took the upper hand early on in a back-and-forth start, taking a 12-7 lead by the 14:45 mark after a three by Zach Gilpin.
- A three by Matt Barr at 9:06 gave the Falcons a 19-11 lead.
- The Setters then caught fire, starting with a three by junior
Evan Gordinier (Monmouth Beach, NJ/Christian Brothers Academy), followed quickly another by graduate student
Christian White (Rochester, NY/Aquinas Institute / Syracuse University) that got Pace back within two.
- Bentley's Brandon Wheeler quickly hit a layup, but White came right back down the court and drained a mid-range jumper to get back within two.
- Senior
Austin Mofunanya (Englewood, NJ/Dwight Morrow / Lincoln College of NE) cleaned up his own shot and put it off the glass for two to tie the game at 21-21 with 6:51 on the clock.
- Gordinier and White then sank back-to-back long balls to give the Setters a 27-21 lead after a 16-2 run, finished up with 10 straight points for Pace.
- Bentley closed the gap and got within two at 29-27 with 4:17 left in the half, but freshman
Jack McGuire (Brielle, NJ/Christian Brothers Academy) kept the Setters on top with yet another three.
- White made his third from behind the arc to make it a 35-29 lead for the Setters, and Mofunanya later hit from under the rim to give the Setters a 37-33 edge with just 1:34 until the break.
- Matt Turkington hit a three for Bentley for the final points of the half, leaving Pace on top, 37-36, heading into the locker room.
HALFTIME LEADERS
- The Setters went 7-of-11 from three-point range in the first half.
- White led all scorers with 13 at the break, including 3-of-4 shooting from long range.
- Gordinier drained 3-of-3 from beyond the arc and finished the half with 11 points.
- Bentley was led by Brandon Wheeler and Ryan Richmond, who matched with eight points apiece in the first 20 minutes.
SECOND HALF
- Bentley opened the second frame on an 11-4 run to take a 48-41 lead at the 17:56 mark.
- White and Gordinier then made back-to-back threes, getting the Setters back within a point.
- The Falcons took the momentum back, going on a 20-2 run to take a double-digit lead, which they held through the final buzzer.
SETTER STATS
- Gordinier finished with a career-high 19 points after going 5-of-7 from three.
- White made 4-of-6 threes in the game, tallying 18 points and dishing out a game-high five assists.
- Pace finished with 10 three-pointers in the game.
FALCON LEADERS
- Gilpin hit five threes to finish with a game-high 21 points.
- Wheeler completed a double-double with 20 points and a game-best 11 rebounds.
RECORDS
- Pace: 5-14 (2-9 NE10)
- Bentley: 8-8 (5-6 NE10)
UP NEXT
- The Setters return home to take on Assumption College on Saturday, Jan. 21, at the Goldstein Fitness Center. Saturday's NE10 matchup is set to tip off at 1:30 p.m.
For all information regarding Pace University men's basketball log on to
www.PaceUAthletics.com and follow Pace men's basketball on Twitter (
@PaceMBB).
