BRIDGEPORT, Conn. – After making only one basket in the game's first 36 minutes, University of Bridgeport sophomore wing Bakary Camara (Harlem, N.Y.) broke a 63-all tie with two in a span of 40 seconds, propelling the Purple Knights to a 72-70 win over Bentley University in non-conference men's basketball New Year's Eve afternoon at Harvey Hubbell Gymnasium.

Down two after rebounding a Bridgeport missed front end of a one-and-one with 13.5 seconds left, the Falcons went for a game-winning trifecta but the attempt by freshman guard Jordan Mello-Klein (Sharon, Mass./Thayer Academy) was off the mark and the rebound went to the h

Bridgeport, ranked third in the latest D2SIDA East Region rankings, improved to 10-4 while Bentley finished the 2017 portion of its schedule at 7-5.

Junior guard Ryan Richmond (Toronto, Ont./Thompson Collegiate) and sophomore forward Chris Hudson (Hodgdon, Maine/Williston Northampton School) were the top scorers for Bentley with 21 and 18, respectively.

Bridgeport was powered by freshman guard Yasir Lawrence (Elmont, N.Y.), who knocked down six of nine three-pointers en route to 24 points.

Bentley, which faced an 11-point deficit with a little more than eight minutes to play, stormed back with a 13-2 run to draw even at 63. Mello-Klein had four during the run, including a game-tying put-back and both Richmond and senior forward Matt Turkington (Cromwell, Conn./Cromwell HS) connected from three-point land.

Bridgeport went back on top with the two Camara baskets, a layup and a 10-footer in the lane. Lawrence's final triple of the game made it a five-point spread, 70-65, with 2:25 left. Richmond answered with a three-point play, bringing the Falcons within two again, this time at 70-68 with 1:24 remaining.

After Richmond misfired on a foul line jumper with under 40 seconds, Bridgeport freshman Travis Morgan-Robinson (Elmont, N.Y.) pushed the Knights' lead to four with a pair of free throws with 24.3 seconds. Hudson's lay-up with 14.5 seconds again made it a two-point game and the Falcons had one last chance, albeit unsuccessful, when junior forward Zach Gilpin (Hampden, Maine/Hampden Academy) grabbed his 11th rebound.

Bentley was looking at a 42-33 deficit at the half after Bridgeport forced 10 turns during the first 20 minutes and turned those into 13 points. In addition, the Purple Knights were hot from downtown, hitting six of 11 three-pointers, and also collected seven offensive rebounds.

After trailing by as many as 10, Bentley used a 12-5 run to draw within three, 27-24, with a little less than six minutes left in the half. Richmond had the first four of the spurt and both Hudson and Mello-Klein delivered three-balls for the Falcons.

Bridgeport answered right back with ten straight to extend the lead to 13, 37-24. Freshman forward Hassan Abbas (Nahlus, Palestine) had two inside baskets and both Lawrence and junior Floyd Preito sank triples.

Richmond, now three points away from 1,000 for his career, was 8 of 15 overall and also had four rebounds and four assists. Hudson, in his first start since November, had nine rebounds in addition to his 18 points, and Mello-Klein finished with 14 points, five rebounds and five assists.

Bentley also received nine points from Gilpin and nine rebounds from senior forward Brandon Wheeler (Stamford, Conn./Trinity Catholic HS).

Rebounding helped Bentley get back in the game with the Falcons finishing with a 50-38 advantage, including 30-19 in the second half. The Falcons also had a big edge at the line, 15 of 21 as compared to four of eight.

However, Bridgeport's 10 of 18 from three (Bentley was 6-17) and the Falcons' 16 turnovers, twice as many as UB, offset those numbers.

Bentley will also be on the road Wednesday when it resumes Northeast-10 action at Le Moyne College.