WALTHAM, Mass. – After climbing to fourth in the D2CSC East Region men's basketball rankings, the Bentley University Falcons will be looking for their first four-game winning streak of the season Wednesday when they host the American International College Yellow Jackets. The 7:30 pm game will be streamed over the NE10 NOW Digital Network.

At the midpoint of the conference schedule, Bentley is 12-6 overall and 7-4 overall after coming from behind to win its last two games, both on the road. Coach Jay Lawson's squad defeated Southern Connecticut Jan. 16, 72-66, after trailing by nine with five minutes to play and Pace on Saturday, 79-70, after the Setters were up 14 with four minutes left in the first half.

The Falcons have enjoyed success inside the Dana Center in recent years. They are 8-0 with a 21.9 scoring margin this season, unbeaten in their last 12, and 38-3 since the start of the 2021-22 season.

AIC has lost five in a row and 12 of 15 since starting the season with two wins. Saturday's 73-69 loss at Saint Anselm dropped the Yellow Jackets to 5-12 overall and 3-8 NE10.

The Falcons will be looking to even the season series with the Yellow Jackets after a 72-66 overtime loss out in Springfield Nov. 21. Bentley, after yielding only 35 points over the first 31:50 while building a 17-point lead, was outscored 37-14 over the final 13 minutes and finished with its second lowest shooting performance of the season, .333.

 The conference's top two scorers will be in action Wednesday, Bentley senior guard Zach Laput (Beacon Falls, Conn./Notre Dame HS), the current NE10 Player of the Week, and AIC junior wing Justice Ellison. Laput, who has climbed to 17^th on Bentley's all-time scoring list with 1,443 points, averages 21.6 overall and has produced 24 points a game since the calendar changed to 2024. Ellison's average of 20.1 is up seven points from a year ago. In the meeting two months ago, Laput finished with 23, including a game-tying lay-up with six seconds left, and Ellison had 20, including 16 during the final eight minutes of regulation.

Bentley, which leads the conference in scoring at 80.4, has three other players with double-figure averages. Sophomore guard Cash McClure (Readfield, Maine/Maranacook HS), the Falcons' top rebounder, scores nearly 13 a game. Graduate wing Kellan Bochenek (Kettering, Ohio/Fairmont HS) is in the top ten in Division II in three-pointers (56/118, .475) and nets 12.6 a game. Senior guard Aaron Latham (Glastonbury, Conn./Glastonbury HS) follows at 11.7 and has a team-best 32 steals.

Against Pace, the frontcourt trio of senior Ivan Misic (Toronto, Ont.) and sophomores Joe Carroll (Cedar Grove, N.J./Don Bosco Prep) and Chase Clarke (Bloomfield, N.J./Newark Academy) combined for 27 points in the Pace win. Misic averages 8.8 points and 4.2 rebounds and the other two provide about four a game off the bench.

Bentley is number one nationally in fewest fouls committed and also leads the East Region in assist-turnover ratio, free throw percentage, scoring margin, three-pointers, three-point accuracy and fewest turnovers.

While Lawson's starting five hasn't varied all season, AIC has started ten different players who season with Ellison the only Yellow Jacket to get the nod in every game. The Yellow Jackets, who haven't scored 70 since returning from their holiday break, average 70.4 points and allow 75.6.

The team's number two scorer is senior wing Jalen Jordan with a 10.3 average. Sophomore guard Kanye Wavezwa is a 39 percent shooter from three and his 25 treys is second on the team to Ellison's 30 .

Bentley leads the series 52-29 and had won nine straight against the Yellow Jackets before the November loss.

Following Wednesday, it's back to the road for the Falcons with games at New Haven Saturday and Saint Anselm Tuesday.