MANCHESTER, N.H. – It's on to the second round of the NCAA Division II Men's Basketball East Regional for the second-seeded and reigning champion Bentley University Falcons following a 77-67 win over Dominican University (N.Y.) Saturday afternoon at Saint Anselm College's Stoutenburgh Gymnasium.

All five Falcon starters scored in doubles with Northeast-10 and D2CCA Player of the Year Zach Laput (Beacon Falls, Conn./Holy Cross HS) leading the way. The junior guard finished with 20 points, 12 rebounds and four assists, and was followed in the scoring column by graduate forward Matt Leritz (St. Louis, Mo./St. Louis University HS) with 13.

Bentley, 22-6 and ranked 25^th in the NABC Division II coaches poll, will take on a familiar foe ,Southern New Hampshire University, Sunday at 5 pm in the first half of a semifinal doubleheader at Stoutenburgh. The Penmen, who are coached by former Bentley captain and assistant coach Jack Perri, advanced with a 78-64 Saturday in the first game of the quadruple-header.

"You have to be pleased to advance at this time of the year," said longtime Bentley head coach Jay Lawson. "There was a lot more good than bad with our play today."

Following seven early lead changes, Bentley seized control by outscoring the Chargers 27-8 over the final 13:20 of the first half to build a 40-21 lead. Senior forward Isaac Martin (Atlanta, Ga./Norcross HS) broke the 13-all deadlock with his second three of the afternoon. After a Charger basket, the next eight points belong to the Falcons. Senior guard Brian Wright-Kinsey (Brooklyn, N.Y./Brooks School) made two free throws, Laput connected on a floater and junior guard Aaron Latham (Glastonbury, Conn./Glastonbury HS) hit a jumper after an offensive rebound by Wright-Kinsey.

By the half, six different Falcons had scored between four and nine points with Leritz at the top of the list. Bentley had a 9-4 advantage in points off turnovers and outscored the Chargers 10-2 on second-chance opportunities.

Dominican, a team Bentley defeated 95-58 back in November, opened the second with eight unanswered points, but the Falcons quickly regained control. A 17-2 explosion boosted the lead to 25, 59-33, with 9:22 to play.

The run opened with a lay-up from senior guard Mason Webb (Oklahoma City, Okla./Bishop McGuinness HS), finished with a three-pointer launched by senior guard Kellen Bochenek (Kettering, Ohio/Fairview HS) and included eight points from Laput.

It was still a 23-point bulge with four minutes to play when the Chargers embarked on a 16-1 spurt, a run fueled by their pressure, to draw within eight with 48 seconds to play.

They got no closer and Bentley finished it by making six of six free throws in the final 31 seconds, four by Latham and two from Wright-Kinsey.

Laput, 8 of 18 overall, and Leritz, were followed on the scoring list by Latham (12 points while playing all 40 minutes), Webb (12) and Wright-Kinsey (11).

Bentley, which outshot Dominican 44-41 percent after holding the Chargers in the low thirties for much of the game, had a 42-36 rebound advantage. In addition to 12 from Laput, Wright-Kinsey grabbed nine and Latham corralled seven.

Second chance points played a big role with Bentley a plus-eight in that category, 16-8, despite having only one more offensive rebound (12-11).

Senior guard Wahaad Johnson (Brooklyn, N.Y.) led Dominican (21-9) with 16 points.

Bentley and Southern New Hampshire split during the regular season with each winning on the other's home court. The Falcons prevailed in Manchester in November, 78-60, and the Penmen rallied from a 12-point deficit to win at the Dana Center 81-76 Feb. 1. Laput was the top scorer for coach Jay Lawson's team in both, with 21 and 25 points.

"We know them (Southern New Hampshire) so well," said Laput. "The last meeting left a sour taste in our mouth after being up 12 at home. We need to be locked in tomorrow. We like our chances when we play well."