WALTHAM, Mass. – Following a road loss at Assumption College in its Northeast-10 Conference opener, the Bentley University men's basketball team will return home to host Stonehill College Saturday afternoon, with the opening tip slated for 3:30 pm.

Bentley will bring a 1-2 overall record into the game while Stonehill is off to a 3-0 start, including a 91-88 overtime win over Merrimack Wednesday in its NE-10 season-debut.

Each of Bentley's first three games has seen the team that held the halftime lead come up short in the end. In the opener against 14th-ranked Philadelphia, the Falcons rallied from eight down at the break to prevail 72-63.  On the other hand, coach Jay Lawson's team was up 34-30 at the half of a one-point loss to Holy Family and had a 36-34 advantage at the break before falling to Assumption, 81-74.

Senior guard Keegan Hyland (South Portland, Maine/South Portland HS) tops the early-season scoring list for the Falcons with his 21.3 average sixth best in the Northeast-10. He owns a .579 field goal percentage, has made nine of 19 from outside the arc and also averages 6.7 rebounds and 1.7 steals.

Junior All-Conference forward Tyler McFarland (Rockport, Maine/Camden Hills HS) follows at 15.7 points a game, along with six rebounds and two blocks. Included was a 17-point, 10-rebound double-double at Assumption.

Senior guard JP Koury (Red Bank, N.J./CBA) also sports a double-figure scoring average (11.3) and is also the team-leader in rebounds (7.3 average), assists (10), steals (7) and free throws (14-16). With the backcourt depth depleted by injury, sophomore Ferguson Duke (Dartmouth, N.S./Hun School (N.J.)) made his first career start at Assumption and responded with a career-high 15 points.

Stonehill kept its record unblemished with junior guard Adam Bramanti buried an off-balance three-pointer at the buzzer of OT for the victory at Merrimack. That was the Skyhawks' 15th triple of the game. They finished 15 of 27 from downtown after making only 11 of 46 in their first two contests.

Leading the three-point barrage was junior guard Carter Smith, who knocked down six of ten en route to a season-best 24 points. That boosted his scoring average to 17.7 and he comes into today with a .581 field goal percentage.

Six-foot-eight senior Jack Cole has had an outstanding first week in making baskets with his .762 field goal percentage the best in the conference by a player with at least 10 field goal attempts. He's averaged 13 points and Bramanti is also in doubles (11.7).

Bentley will also be in action on Tuesday, playing a 7:30 game at Southern New Hampshire. The next home game is a week from Sunday against the University of Bridgeport (2 pm).