WALTHAM, Mass. -- Senior forward Elise Caira (Wakefield/Arlington Catholic HS) provided 19 points, on 9-of-12 shooting and nine rebounds, and freshman forward Jacqui Brugliera (Fitchburg/ Wachusett Reg. HS) added a career-best 18 points off the bench as Bentley University rolled to a 72-48 win over Saint AnselmSaint Anselm College in Northeast-10 Conference women's basketball Tuesday night at the Dana Center.

Bentley, which broke the game open with a 23-4 explosion of the final nine-and-a-half minutes of the first half, improved to 2-1 overall and 2-0 in the NE-10. Saint Anselm, which hadn't allowed more than 46 points in any of its first four games, dropped to 3-2 overall and 1-1 in the conference.

Ahead by one at 18-17, Bentley's impressive first-half close began with a spurt of 11 straight points. Brugliera made a pair of free throws and a lay-up, and Caira followed with a three-point play and two more lay-ups, pushing a one-point lead to a dozen (29-17, 6:12 left).

The differential stood at 20 at the break, with Bentley's 41 first-half points nearly matching Saint Anselm's average points allowed entering the contest, 41.8. In that opening frame, Caira had 15 on seven-of-nine shooting and Brugliera hit four of seven shots for 11 points.

As a team, Bentley shot 52 percent from the floor, enjoyed a 21-10 dominance on the boards and scored an amazing 28 points in the paint during the opening 20 minutes of play.

Any hopes that Saint Anselm had of a second-half comeback were dashed when the Falcons ran off their second 11-0 spurt of the contest, this one extending the lead from 17 to a commanding 28, 63-35 with 8:47 to play. That run was again ignited by four Brugliera points and saw four other players also contribute points.

Brugliera, who also had six rebounds, led a strong effort from the Falcon non-starters, who outscored the Hawk reserves 35-17 and had 13 assists, one more than the entire Saint Anselm team. Junior Kelsey Roberson (Arlington/Arlington Catholic HS) and freshman Christiana Bakolas (Manchester, N.H./Central HS) each had four helpers for the Falcons.

Following Caira and Brugliera on the Falcon scoring list was freshman forward Lauren Battista (North Easton/Oliver Ames HS), with eight points, three rebounds and two assists.

Junior guard Epiphany Smith (Springdale, Ark.) led Saint Anselm with 13 points, eight coming in the first three minutes to give the Hawks the early advantage.

Bentley, which shot 47 percent, dominated in the specialty categories, outscoring the Hawks 42-18 in the paint, 25-9 off turnovers and 14-2 on the fast break. The Falcons had 21 assists on 27 baskets and Saint Anselm finished with more giveaways (26) than field goals (20).

Bentley is back in action Sunday with a 1:30 game at Southern New Hampshire.

At Waltham, Mass. (Dana Center)

BENTLEY 72, SAINT ANSELM 48

SAINT ANSELM (3-2, 1-1 NE-10) -- Epiphany Smith 5-9 0-0 13; Megan Howard 4-6 0-0 8; Briana Jones 4-7 0-0 8; Curran Leighton 4-8 0-0 8; Morgan Frame 1-3 1-2 3; Tori Lehr 1-2 0-0 2; Mariah Wynn 1-3 0-0 2; Jennifer Gureckis 0-6 2-2 2; Meg Morrissey 0-2 2-4 2; Kellianne Josephsen 0-0 0-0 0; Sarah Craft 0-0 0-0 0; Hilary Lumpkins 0-1 0-0 0; Rose Badja 0-0 0-0 0; Vanessa D'Ambrosi 0-3 0-0 0. Totals 20-50 5-8 48

BENTLEY (2-1, 2-0 NE-10) -- Elise Caira 9-12 1-3 19; Jacqui Brugliera 6-12 6-9 18; Lauren Battista 3-6 2-2 8; Courtney Finn 2-4 0-0 6; Meghan Thomann 2-3 0-0 6; Lauren Massie 2-3 0-2 5; Caralyn Hart 1-1 1-1 3; Kim Brennan 1-4 1-2 3; Kelsey Roberson 1-5 0-0 2; Christiana Bakolas 0-3 1-4 1; Katherine Goodwin 0-3 1-2 1; Shatasia Kearse 0-2 0-1 0; Ashley Saia 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 27-58 13-26 72.

Halftime: B 41-21; 3-point goals--SA 3-16 (Smith 3-7; Jones 0-1; Wynn 0-1; Gureckis 0-4; D'Ambrosi 0-3), B 5-14 (Thomann 2-3; Finn 2-3; Massie 1-1; Brennan 0-1; Roberson 0-2; Goodwin 0-3; Brugliera 0-1). Fouled out--None. Rebounds--SA 31 (Howard, Smith 4), B 37 (Caira 9). Assists--SA 12 (Jones 4), B 21 (Roberson, Bakolas 4). Total fouls--SA 24, B 11. Technical fouls--None.