PLEASANTVILLE, N.Y. – Six-foot-six junior forward Keon Williams (Hackensack, N.J.) scored 16 of his 24 points in the second half and also claimed 16 rebounds as Pace University took over after halftime and went on to defeat Bentley University, 84-74, in Northeast-10 Conference men's basketball Saturday afternoon at the Goldstein Fitness Center.

The outcome left the two teams even in the conference standings, both a game back of first-place Adelphi University with 6-3 NE-10 records. Bentley dipped to 10-3 after having its win streak snapped at five, and Pace improved to 8-5 with its first win over the Falcons in nine years.

Bentley seemed to be in control at the half, taking a 45-38 lead into the locker room after closing out the opening 20 minutes with a 12-5 spurt. Senior guard Sam Leclerc (Fayette, Maine/ Winthrop HS) hit three baskets during that run, giving him 16 first-half points.

Any momentum gained by the strong finish to the half vanished during the intermission as Pace exploded out of the gate and Bentley scored on only one of its first nine possessions. That resulted in an 18-2 spurt  that turned the seven-point deficit into a nine-point bulge, 56-47. Five different Setters scored over that span of 5:20, including sophomore guard Denzel Primus-Devonish (Riverdale, Md.) with five points.

Six straight Pace points, including four by Williams, extended the differential to a game-high 16, 71-55 with 7:48 left.

Still down 15 (75-60) with a little more than five minutes left to play, Bentley quickly ran off nine in a row to make it a two-possession game, 75-69 with 3:45 left.  Junior forward Dan O'Keefe (Lexington, Mass./Lexington HS) made a free throw, freshman forward Andrew Shaw (Saco, Maine/ Thornton Academy) buried a three-pointer, junior guard Greg Jacques (Brockton, Mass./St. Sebastian's HS) scored on a fast-break, and sophomore guard Jasper Grassa (Lynn, Mass./Lynn Classical HS) sank a triple from the corner.

Bentley was off target on its next three shots, and after about two minutes in which neither team scored, Williams ended the drought by making two free throws with 1:44 left. Jacques countered with a basket for the Falcons, again making it a six-point game with 1:36 to play. It would be about 75 seconds before the visitors scored again and by that point, Pace had stretched its lead to 12 by hitting six of eight free throws, including four by Primus-Devonish.

Hurting the Falcons in the second half were 11 second-chance points and 14 off seven turnovers. Those two factors helped the Setters take five more shots and eight more free throws than Bentley after intermission.

The Falcons, after shooting 46 percent with six three-balls during the opening stanza, saw those numbers dip to 39 percent and three treys in the second half. In addition, they were dominated on the boards after the break, 22-13 after being even (19 apiece) in the first half.

Leclerc, held without a shot after intermission, paced Bentley with 16 points and O'Keefe followed with 14, along with a team-best six rebounds. Grassa (12) and Shaw (10) also scored in doubles.

Williams, who grabbed six of his rebounds at the offensive end, made eight of 15 shots overall and sank eight of his nine free throws. Primus-Devonish followed with 18 points, five rebounds and four assists, and sophomore forward Jonathan Merceus (Union, N.J.) helped out with 13 points and four blocks.

Bentley's next game is Wednesday night at American International.