Zach Gilpin
Zach Gilpin

Bentley Shoots Past Le Moyne, 79-71, to Snap Dolphins’ 10-Game Win Streak

WALTHAM, Mass. – Sophomores Zach Gilpin (Hampden, Maine/Hampden Academy) and Ryan Richmond (Toronto, Ont./Thomson Collegiate) combined for 39 points and senior guard Matt Barr (Stratham, N.H./Cushing Academy) knocked down four of six from deep as Bentley University led throughout en route to a 79-71 win over Le Moyne College in Northeast-10 Conference men's basketball Saturday afternoon at the Dana Center.

Gilpin finished with 21 on 9-of-14 shooting and Richmond followed with 18 as the Falcons won for the fifth time in six games and halted the Dolphins' ten-game winning streak.

Bentley improved to 9-8 overall and 6-6 Northeast-10 while Le Moyne dropped to 14-4 overall, including 9-3 NE10.

An elbow jumper by Richmond and a lay-up from senior forward Brandon Wheeler (Stamford, Conn./Trinity Catholic HS) opened the game's scoring, giving the Falcons a lead they would never surrender.

That grew into a 15-7 opening run as Gilpin got into the act with seven points, including his only three-ball of the day, and Richmond also connected from downtown.

The second half saw the Falcons maintain the lead with the differential ranging from four to 14. A three from senior guard Ferguson Duke (Dartmouth, N.S./Hun School (N.J.)) and an elbow jumper by Wheeler opened the scoring after the break and gave Bentley its biggest lead of the game at 48-34. Le Moyne followed with ten unanswered, drawing within four with about 15 minutes left.

Bentley graduated pushed the lead back to 13 at 67-54 with 5:41 left, but Le Moyne wasn't done yet. The Dolphins countered with a 10-2 lead to cut the difference to five, and got even closer on a three-point play by junior guard Russell Sangster with 1:31 remaining. That made it a 71-67 game, matching the closest the visitors came during the game's final 24 minutes.

With the two teams still separated by four, Duke came up with a big blocked shot with about 20 seconds left. Richmond got the rebound, was fouled and knocked down two from the line with 16.8 seconds to play. Duke and Richmond locked up the win with each making two free throws in the final 10.3 seconds.

Richmond, in addition to his 17 points, gave the Falcons seven rebounds and three assists in 38 turnover-free minutes. Barr finished with 15 and Duke, in addition to 12 points, came up with three steals and two rejections. Wheeler nearly had his fifth double-double, finishing with ten rebounds and nine points.

Bentley had a solid shooting performance, finishing at .519 overall, .500 from three (8-16) and .789 from the line (15-19). Le Moyne, on the other hand, was limited to .403, including 10 of 30 from three, and attempted only ten free throws, making seven.

The Falcons finished with two more rebounds, 35-33, although the Dolphins' 11 offensive led to 11 second chance points. Turnovers were not a big factor with Bentley losing the ball ten times and Le Moyne seven.

Bentley will be on the road twice this coming week, playing at Saint Rose Wednesday and at Southern Connecticut Saturday.