WALTHAM, Mass. – Following a 102-54 win at Franklin Pierce University on Wednesday, the Bentley University men's basketball team will return to the Dana Center for their final two games, beginning Saturday afternoon at Pace University (3:30 pm, NE10 NOW).

Coach Jay Lawson's Falcons, 19-8 overall with an East Region-best six-game winning streak, will be looking to reach the 20-win milestone for the third straight season, as well as for the 12^th time in this century.

The Falcons, entering the penultimate game of the regular season, are in second place in the Northeast-10. They have clinched a first-round bye in the conference tournament and are two games back of St. Michael's College. The Purple Knights need one win in their final two games, at Adelphi and home against American International, to claim the title outright.

Pace, after winning four straight, is in fourth place with records of 16-10 overall and 12-8 conference. In the battle for the top four and a first-round bye, the Setters are a game ahead of Saint Anselm, Southern Connecticut and Southern New Hampshire.

Five weeks ago in Pleasantville, N.Y., Bentley earned a 79-70 win at Pace, the Falcons' fifth straight victory in a series they lead 29-11. After trailing by as many as 14 in the first half, Lawson's team closed with a 13-4 run to gain the win. Graduate wing Kellan Bochenek (Kettering, Ohio/Fairmont HS) led the way with 18 points and senior guard Zach Laput (Beacon Falls, Conn./Notre Dame HS) followed with 17.

Bentley, 41-4 at home over the last three seasons, posted its sixth 100-point game of the season Wednesday, the program's most since having nine during the 1987-88 season, is averaging a conference-best 81.3 points. The Falcons lead the East in scoring margin (+12.1) and are second in rebound margin (+6.0).

Laput, 11 points away from becoming the 11^th Falcon to reach the 1,600-point plateau, has averaged 21.3 points at home this season while shooting 50 percent from the field, 46 percent from three and 92 percent from the line. As compared to last year when he earned Northeast-10 Player of the Year honors, his scoring is down slightly from 20.4 to 19.8, and his rebounds (7.1), assists (4.4) and steals (1.4) are up.

Also scoring in doubles for the Falcons are Bochenek at 12.9, sophomore guard and rebound leader Cash McClure (Readfield, Maine/Maranacook HS) at 14.0 and senior guard Aaron Latham (Glastonbury, Conn./Glastonbury HS) at 11.8. Bochenek has 11 games this season with at least four treys, and his 83 this season ranks eighth nationally in Division II.

Lawson's eight-man rotation also includes senior forward Ivan Misic (Toronto, Ont.), graduate forward Isaac Martin (Atlanta, Ga./Norcross HS) and sophomore forwards Chase Clarke (Bloomfield, N.J./Newark Academy) and Joe Carroll (Cedar Grove, N.J./Don Bosco Prep). Carroll has scored in doubles off the bench in four of the last five games, a stretch in which he's averaged 12.8 points and made half of his 18 attempts from deep.

Pace features the duo of graduate forward Bryan Powell and transfer point guard Tray Alexander. Powell, who is in the top ten on the school's all-time scoring list, has 1,567 career points and is averaging 17.5 points and 5.3. rebounds. Over the last six, he's totaled 149 points, an average of 24.8.

Alexander, who previously played for Saint Rose and Florida Southern, has had a standout season while averaging 39 minutes a game. He averages 12.3 points, seven assists and two steals, and had a triple-double recently against Assumption.  

Bentley's final game of the regular season is Tuesday against Southern Connecticut State.