WALTHAM, Mass. – After coming up short against Franklin Pierce University, the Bentley University men's basketball team faces a difficult challenge over the next week as it strives to qualify for the Northeast-10 Conference championships.

The road will begin Wednesday when the Falcons travel to Colchester, Vt. to face a St. Michael's College team it lost to back in December by one, 77-76. Game time at the Ross Sports Center is 7:30 pm with a webcast available at www.smcathletics.tv.

That first game with the Purple Knights, as well as Saturday's with Franklin Pierce, are two of four conference losses this year's team has suffered by four points or less, or in overtime. As a result, Bentley (11-12) finds itself in sixth place in the NE10's Northeast Division, needing a strong finish and help from others to extend the season beyond next Tuesday's regular season finale.

Five teams from the Northeast qualify and Bentley (8-10 NE10) is essentially two games out. The Falcons trail fifth-place Stonehill by one game, with the Skyhawks also owning the tie-breaker should the two finish tied, and fourth-place Franklin Pierce by two games.

All three teams have similar schedules in that they each play two of the Northeast Division's top three teams and one team in the bottom two. However, Stonehill and Franklin Pierce have two home games and Bentley only has one.

Bentley, after visiting St. Michael's, will host Saint Anselm Saturday before closing out the regular season slate at Merrimack Tuesday. Stonehill will sandwich a trip to first-place Southern New Hampshire around home games against Saint Anselm and St. Michael's. Franklin Pierce will finish at Assumption following home games with Southern New Hampshire and Merrimack.

Saturday's loss to Pierce, only the fourth setback in 13 home games, saw the Falcons take an 84-83 lead when sophomore guard Ryan Richmond (Toronto, Ont./Thomson Collegiate) connected from mid-range with 47.2 seconds left. Franklin Pierce answered with a late-shot clock three with 20.1 seconds, producing the 13th and final lead change.

Senior guards Ferguson Duke (Dartmouth, N.S./Hun School (N.J.)) and Matt Barr (Stratham, N.H./Cushing Academy), who each average 10.4 ppg in conference action, combined for 36 points for Bentley with Duke's 20, on 7-of-11 shooting, a career-best.

Junior guard Brandon Wheeler (Stamford, Conn./Trinity Catholic HS) achieved his third straight double-double, and ninth of the season, by complementing his 14 rebounds with 15 points. His season production stands at 12.1 points and nine rebounds.

Richmond, held to 17 against the Ravens, remains fourth in the NE10 with a 21.2 scoring average. He's very good at getting to the line (139 of 163) and is one of the best rebounding guards in the conference, claiming 5.5 a game.

St. Michael's has had a difficult season with the Purple Knights' 5-18 record including 4-14 in conference games and 2-8 at home. They've lost four of the last five with the lone win an upset of Southern New Hampshire Feb. 4 in the most recent home game.

St. Michael's features double-double machine Matt Bonds, who averages 22 points and 12.5 rebounds. In the latest NCAA Division II stats, he is second in double-doubles (17), third in offensive rebounds (4.7), fourth in rebounds and 22nd in scoring.

In the earlier meeting between the two teams, the six-foot-five Bonds had 27 points, including the go-ahead basket with 1:12 left, and 16 rebounds while making 75 percent of his shots.