January 26, 2008

BASKETBALL RETURNS TO ACTION SATURDAY AT UMASS LOWELL

SMITHFIELD, RI - The Bryant men's and women's basketball teams return to action this Saturday visiting UMass Lowell for a pair of Northeast-10 Conference games.  The women's game tips off at Costello Gym in Lowell, MA starting at 2 pm followed by the men's game at 4 pm.  Following today's game, the Bulldogs will return home to host Saint Anselm on Wednesday at the Chace Athletic Center.

The Bryant men will be looking to complete a season sweep of the River Hawks after earning a 70-52 win back on December 1 in Smithfield, RI.  Jon Ezeokoli had 16 points while Barry Latham added 14 points and six rebounds in the win. 

Last week, Bryant picked up a huge 73-52 road win at Le Moyne to improve to 10-8 on the season and 6-7 in conference play.  Ezeokoli leads the Bulldogs with 14.8 points per game this season and is averaging 5.5 rebounds per game and has made 30 three-point field goals.

Sophomore Cecil Gresham is next with 11.2 ppg and has 26 three's while sophomore guard Chris Birrell is third with 10.9 ppg and team-high 62 assists .

Bryant is averaging 64.9 points per game and has found success on the board, out-rebounding opponents by nearly five per game (37.9 to 33.3 ave.). The road is another place the Bulldogs have found success this season.  Bryant is 4-4 away from the Chace Athletic Center this year with three of those wins coming in league games. In Northeast-10 Conference games at home, Bryant is 3-4. 

Following Saturday's game, the Bulldogs will have eight regular season games left as the race for securing a spot in the conference tournament heats up. The Bulldogs will face Bentley, Franklin Pierce, Stonehill and Merrimack on the road coupled with home dates with Saint Anselm, AIC, Saint Michael's, and Southern Connecticut. 

The Bentley game next Saturday will be broadcast live on CSTV while the home regular season finale against Southern Connecticut will be carried live on COX Sports-3 in Rhode Island.