MANCHESTER, N.H. – Junior forward Chris Paul (Highland Mills, N.Y.) scored 21 of his game-high 25 points in the first half, leading Saint Anselm College to a 94-55 win over Bentley University in Northeast-10 Conference men's basketball Tuesday night at Stoutenburgh Gymnasium.

 As a result of the loss in the regular season finale, Bentley (17-11, 9-10 NE10) will be seeded fourth in the upcoming conference championships and will host New Haven, the fifth seed in the Southwest Division, Friday night at 5 pm at the Dana Center.

On the other hand, Saint Anselm secured the Northeast Division title with the Hawks improving to 18-8 overall and 14-5 NE10 with their eighth straight win.

Three-pointers from Paul and freshman guard Tyler Arbuckle (Bristol, Conn.) opened the scoring and ignited a 13-3 run to start the game.

Following a pair of Bentley baskets, Paul scored the final seven points of a 14-2 run, making it a 27-9 game just past the midway point of the first half.

At the half, the score stood at 53-16 following 64 percent shooting by Saint Anselm. Paul was eight of ten overall with three triples, and Bentley was only 7 of 34 as a team.

Paul, who finished 10 of 14 shooting with seven rebounds and six helpers, was followed on the scoring column by junior forward Gustav Suhr-Jessen (Virum, Denmark) with 16 points and 13 rebounds.

The top scorers for Bentley were senior forward Chris Hudson (Hodgdon, Maine/Williston Northampton School) with 11 and sophomore guard Brian Wright-Kinsey (Brooklyn, Maine/Brooks  School) with ten. Hudson, the NE10 leader in field goal percentage, struggled through an uncharacteristic 5-for-16 shooting performance.

Saint Anselm shot 59 percent overall, buried 13 of 22 three-pointers and hit all seven of its free throws. Bentley, outrebounded 43-31, was limited to 32 percent shooting and only seven three-pointers in 30 attempts.