MANCHESTER, N.H. -- Bentley University All-America senior guard Jason Westrol (Brielle, N.J./Manasquan HS) matched his career scoring best with 28 points, but the Falcons came up just short, dropping a 72-69 decision to Saint Anselm College in Northeast-10 Conference men's basketball at the Stoutenburgh Gymnasium Tuesday night.
The loss was the first of the season for the Falcons, who moved up to fifth in this week's NABC Division II national coaches poll. Bentley fell to 3-1, Saint Anselm improved to 2-1 and both clubs are 1-1 in the conference after the Hawks' first homecourt win over the Falcons since 1999.
Bentley led by five with six minutes left, but an 8-0 Hawk run resulted in the game's ninth and final lead change. Senior Greg Vetrano (Andover, Mass.) hit a three with 5:41 left, All-Conference guard Thomas Baudinet (Watertown, Conn.) converted a three-point play with 5:01 remaining, and then fed sophomore forward Jack Keough (Owego, N.Y.) on a lay-up to make it 65-62.
The Falcons, down four as the game clock went under a minute, got the ball back on a steal by junior guard Mike Quinn (Oakdale, Conn./Montville HS) and drew within two on a pair of Westrol free throws with 46.6 seconds left. Following a Vetrano miss and Falcon rebound by junior forward Brian Tracey (Bow Mar, Colo./Heritage HS), Westrol was again fouled, and this time he made the first of two, with 15.2 seconds remaining.
There was a scramble for the rebound after the miss, and Bentley gained possession on a jump ball with 11.2 seconds. However, Quinn was whistled for stepping out of bounds with 5.1 seconds left, giving the ball back to the Hawks. Baudinet made two free throws with 4.6 seconds to make it a three-point game, and Westrol's three-point attempt at the buzzer rimmed out.
After Saint Anselm jumped out a 14-9 lead, Bentley embarked on a 20-3 run that turned the five-point deficit into a 29-17 advantage. The Falcons were up 36-23 before the Hawks closed the first half with 10 unanswered points over the final 3:05. Sophomore Hakeem Williams (Spring Valley, N.Y.) had the final five of that run as the Hawks got back into the game.
Senior guard John Brandt (Pawtucket, R.I./Wheeler School) had an explosive first half off the bench for the Falcons, hitting three-pointers from four different areas of the court and matching his career-best with 14 points.
The 10-0 run became 15-0 when Saint Anselm opened the second half with a three by junior guard Pat Luptowski (Keene, N.H.) and a lay-up by freshman Quinn Woodhouse (Gaylord, Mich.). The two clubs weren't separated by more than three again until a Westrol driving lay-up with 6:04 left put Bentley up 62-57.
Westrol scored 20 of his 28 in the second half, and also finished with six rebounds, three assists and a steal. He made 10 of 17 shots overall, including nine of 12 inside the three-point line, and was seven of eight from the free throw stripe. His 28 points boosted his career total to 1,461 and moved him ahead of three players (Kevin Bower '80, Nate Fritsch '08 and Jamie Baker '91) into 13th on Bentley's all-time scoring list.
Quinn followed with 16 points and five rebounds, and Brandt had the afore-mentioned 14. The rest of the team managed only 11 points on 5 of 23 shooting.
Baudinet and Keough led a balanced Saint Anselm attack with 13 points apiece, with Baudinet also grabbing nine rebounds, matching Tracey for game-high.
Bentley will be back at home Sunday afternoon for a 3:30 contest with Southern New Hampshire.
