Conquest nets 25 points, but MCLA Men fall to Bridgewater State 88-75

North Adams, MA- The visiting Bridgewater State Men's Basketball team placed five players in double figures led by Joseph Carty's 21 point, 17 rebound performance as they defeated the MCLA Trailblazers 88-75 this evening in MASCAC action.  The Bears improve to 13-7 overall and are now 6-1 in league play.  MCLA drops to 6-13 overall and is 3-5 in the MASCAC.

Carty came off the bench but still had a monster night.  The senior was 7-13 from the floor and 6-7 from the line for his 21 points.  He helped BSU control the glass with his 17 boards, including five on the offensive end.  Rocky DeAndrade contributed 20 points and 3 steals on 9-17 shooting.  Ryan Carney collected 17 points and canned four triples for the Bears.  Dimitri St. Louis and Rayshon Ward ended with 13 and 12 respectively in the win.

MCLA led early 11-5 after Adam Conquest converted a jumper as the Bears struggled out of the gates.  They would respond though, using a 12-1 spurt to seize their first lead of the night and jump in front 17-12.  MCLA never led again.  They got within three points on a pair of occasions in the half, but BSU cruised into halftime holding a 37-32 advantage.

In the second half, the Bears wasted little time extending the lead.  They increased the lead to double figures for the first time on a jumper from Carty to make it 44-34.  They would push out to a sizable 65-48 lead with 10:17 left to play before MCLA made one last run.  The Trailblazers would get within nine points at 71-62 and seemed to have some momentum, however Carty knocked down a top of the key three pointer with 4:58 left to push back to a double digit advantage again at 74-62.  That bucket started a 6-0 spurt that effectively put the game out of reach and the Bears weren't challenged from there.

MCLA was led by Conquest's season best effort of 25 points and 9 rebounds.  He was 11-18 from the floor.  Mike Demartinis and Ki-Shawn Monroe added 13 points apiece, while Noah Yearsley added 12 in the loss.  Monroe added a game best 7 assists for MCLA.

Both teams shot the ball well as the Bears connected at a 52% clip while the Trailblazers shot 51%.  

The Trailblazers head to Worcester State on Saturday while the Bears take on Westfield State.