MEN’S BASKETBALL TAKES TO THE ROAD AGAIN; FACE LONG ISLAND WEDNESDAY NIGHT AT 7 PM
January 6, 2008
MEN'S BASKETBALL TAKES TO THE ROAD AGAIN; FACE LONG ISLAND WEDNESDAY NIGHT AT 7 PM
UPDATE
The Bulldogs hit the road for the 11th time in the last 13
games as they take on future NEC rival Long Island University.
Tipoff is at 7 p.m. In their last outing, Bryant won its second
Division I contest as they knocked-off Yale, 69-58. The Bulldogs
overcame a 15-point halftime deficit, outscoring Yale 50-24 in the
second half. Pete Lambert led the way with a season-high 16 points
including three three-pointers, while Nick Pontes also notched a
season-high, scoring all of his 15 points in the second half. Point
guard Chris Birrell controlled the Bryant offense, scoring 14
points while grabbing seven rebounds and dishing out five assists.
Cecil Gresham continues to lead the Bulldogs in scoring, averaging
14.1 points per game while hitting 30 three-pointers. The junior
had a game-high 24 at Providence on Dec. 22. His 101 career made
three's ties him for sixth all time with Cullen McCarthy.
THE LONG ISLAND BLACKBIRDS
Long Island University hosts the Bulldogs tonight for the
first-ever matchup between the two programs. The Blackbirds come
into this game tied with Robert Morris for first place in the NEC,
following a, 74-67, win over Sacred Heart on Monday night. Long
Island has won back-to-back games, beating Central Connecticut,
57-44 on Saturday, and will be playing its third game in the last
five days. Kyle Johnson leads the way on the offensive end,
averaging 16.1 points per game, while Ron Manigault has been solid
on the boards, pulling down 8.7 rebounds per contest. Freshman
Julian Boyd garnered NEC Rookie of the Week accolades last week for
the second time this season, averaging eight points and six
rebounds over two games off the bench.
BULLDOGS COMEBACK TO BEAT YALE
The Bulldogs overcame a 15-point second half deficit to
beat Yale 69-58 at the Chace Center on Friday afternoon. Bryant had
four players score in double-figures, with three players
registering season-highs. Pete Lambert led the way with 16 points
while Nick Pontes (15), Chris Birrell (14) and Barry Latham (14)
also reached double-digits. It was the first Division I home
victory for Bryant, who snapped a nine-game losing streak with the
victory.
BRYANT AND LONG ISLAND
This is the first ever meeting between Bryant and Long
Island.
A SECOND HALF TEAM
The Bulldogs are averaging 7.5 points more per game in the
second half than the first half this season, scoring 30.5 points
while shooting 39.2 percent from the floor and 34.4 percent from
three point land. In the first half, Bryant has had its struggles,
shooting at a clip of 34.6 percent from the floor and just 29.6
percent from behind the arc while averaging 23 points. Bryant has
also minimized the rebounding differential in the second half,
going from a -7 differential in the first half to -3.5 in the
second half. Bryant outscored Yale 50-24 in the second half,
shooting 56 percent from the floor.
HOME SWEET HOME
Bryant has shot 44 percent from the floor and 40 percent
from behind the arc in its three home games this season, compared
to just a 33.8 field goal percentage and 29 percent three-point
shooting on the road. The Bulldogs have also done a better job on
the boards at home, getting outrebounded 33.8 to 28.3 at home while
the margin climbs to 39.6 to 27.7 on the road.
GRESHAM EXCELS IN SPOTLIGHT
Junior forward Cecil Gresham (Bloomfield, Conn. / MCI)
averaged 21.7 points per game over a three game span while going
15-25 from three-point range (60 percent) against Columbia,
Quinnipiac and UConn. The junior grabbed All-Tournament
accolades at the Columbia Classic for his 23 points per game
effort. After struggling against Albany and Iowa, Gresham scored a
game-high 14 points while knocking down four three's and grabbing a
season-best seven rebounds against Army, followed by a 14-point
second half performance against Boston College, including 5 three's
and seven more rebounds to finish with a team-high 19 points on the
night. After scoring a game-high 24 points against Providence,
Gresham showed his dominance against the New England Big Three
(UConn, BC, Providence) averaging 20.7 points and five rebounds per
game while hitting 13 three's. In six games against BCS schools
(Iowa, Rutgers, BC, Providence, Maryland and UConn), Gresham has
averaged 15.8 points and four boards per game.
TAKING AIM AT THE RECORD BOOK
Cecil Gresham needs just one more three to pass Cullen
McCarthy for 6th on the Bryant all-time list for three-pointers
made in a career. Gresham currently has 101 made three-pointers in
just his junior year.
