Box Score Francis finishes with 20 points, 10 boards in losing effort Saturday
SMITHFIELD, R.I. – The Bryant University men's basketball team trailed by three late in the second half, but Mount St. Mary's took off late and used strong defense to limit the home side's scoring chances down the stretch, as the Bulldogs fell, 71-62, on Saturday afternoon in the 2011-12 season finale at the Chace Athletic Center.
Bryant finishes its final season of reclassification with a 2-28 overall record and a 1-17 mark in Northeast Conference play. Already eliminated from postseason competition, the Mountaineers wrap up the year sporting an 8-21 record while going 6-12 in league play.
After erasing a previous game-high nine-point deficit early in the second half, the Bulldogs clawed to within three at 59-56 with 4:50 left to play. But from that point on, the Black and Gold would make just one field goal the rest of the way, as the Mountaineers used timely scoring to stretch their lead to seven, forcing the Bulldogs to foul down the stretch.
The closest that Bryant would come would be at 66-62 with 52 seconds left on the clock, as junior Daniel Calandrillo (Leonardo, N.J.) nailed a pair of free throws to trim it to a 66-62 lead for the Mount. But the Bulldogs could not connect on a 3-pointer with 47 seconds left, and the Mountaineers were awarded trips to the stripe on consecutive possessions to seal the nine-point victory.
One season after garnering the NEC Rookie of the Year award, Alex Francis (Harlem, N.Y.) closed out a solid sophomore campaign with a game-high 20 points and 10 rebounds. The New Yorker led the Bulldogs in scoring and rebounding for the 32nd and 41st times in his career, respectively. The afternoon also marked his 16th career double-double and 52nd personal double-figure scoring game.
Junior point guard Frankie Dobbs (Berea, Ohio) also finished the season on a high note, as the team's leader in assists chipped in 17 points and garnered four boards while dishing a side-high five helpers.
Junior Vlad Kondratyev (Nikolayev, Ukraine) – hindered by injuries in each of the past two seasons – was strong on Saturday, finishing with nine points while collecting eight boards in 26 minutes of action. True freshman Ben Altit (Herzeliya, Israel) accounted for the game's only block and contributed five points and six rebounds.
Two Mountaineers finished in double figures with Julian Kelvin Parker leading the way with 15 points and 10 boards. Behind him, Julian Norfleet dropped 12 and hauled in six rebounds, while Josh Castellanos dished a game-high nine assists and came up with three steals.
Bryant finished the day a modest 19-of-56 (.339) from the field while going only 6-for-29 (.207) from long range. Mount St. Mary's shot 45.6 percent on the afternoon (26-57) but was hotter from the outside, as the visitors converted 31.6 percent (6-19) of their chances from beyond the arc. The Bulldogs were stronger from the charity stripe, finishing 18-for-25 (.720) compared to a meager 56.5 percent (13-23) success rate for the Mountaineers.
Bryant held a 41-38 edge in rebounding but committed four more turnovers (16-12) than the Mountaineers. The visitors also dominated the takeaway department (12-4) and finished with a 34-18 advantage in points scored in the paint.
In the first half, the Mountaineers benefited from some high-accuracy shooting in the opening minutes, as the visitors took a 10-7 lead on 4-of-7 shooting – including 2-of-3 from long range – while the Bulldogs scuffled from the field, making only two of their first 10 shots and missing all three from the outside.
Neither team would lead by more than four points in the stanza, as the Mountaineers held such a margin twice during the first half and led, 26-22, with 4:42 to play. But the Bulldogs would rally back to tie the match three more times in the remainder of the half, and Calandrillo put the home side ahead by two (28-26) with 3:22 remaining.
But a jumper from Ja'Colby Wells in the next possession would tie the game for the seventh time at 2:56. Neither would make a field goal from that point out, as both sides combined for three free throws to close out the first frame. Castellanos closed out the stanza by making a pair of chances from the stripe to send the Mountaineers into the break with a 30-29 lead.
The future continues to be bright for the Black and Gold, as the program will benefit from a senior-less roster this season by returning the entirety of its roster next year while adding a handful of redshirt players and a strong recruiting class. The Bulldogs will look to battle for their first-ever postseason appearance when they become a full Division I member in 2012-13.
For continuing coverage of Bryant University men's basketball, check back online at www.bryantbulldogs.com; also follow the Bulldogs on Twitter @BryantAthletics.
