Men's Basketball Edged by Salem, 60-59

BRIDGEWATER, Mass. – Senior guard Andrew White's (Medford, Mass.) free throw with 14 seconds remaining provided the difference as the Salem State University men's basketball team edged host Bridgewater State University, 60-59, in a Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference (MASCAC) tilt on Saturday afternoon at the Tinsley Center.

The Vikings, who improved to 12-5 on the season and 5-0 in the MASCAC, survived a furious second half rally as the Bears (10-8, 4-1 MASCAC) erased a 16-point deficit on the strength of a 15-0 run.

Junior guard Bryan Ortiz (Salem, Mass.) paced visiting Salem with 19 points as he knocked down 5 of 10 three-point attempts.  White finished with a double-double as he tallied 14 points and ten boards to go along with three assists and three steals.  Senior forward Ryan Salvador (Lynn, Mass.) came off the bench to score ten points on 5-for-5 shooting.  Salvador also grabbed six rebounds.

BSU junior forward Michael Lofton (Mansfield, Mass.) led all players with 21 points and 12 rebounds as he recorded his eighth double-double of the season.  Senior guard Brendan Monteiro (Brockton, Mass.) added 14 points for the Bears, while junior forward Kyle Gibson (Franklin, Mass.) chipped in with ten and junior guard Barrett Murphy (Marshfield, Mass.) came off the bench to score 13 points and grab four rebounds.

Trailing 50-34 with 13:45 remaining in the second half, the Bears held the Vikings scoreless for almost seven minutes as Bridgewater cut the deficit to one (50-49) with the clock ticking under seven minutes.  Monteiro scored six points during the 15-0 run including a pair of free throws at the 7:50 mark to make it a one-point game.

Salem responded with six quick points on a Salvador layup and four free throws by senior forward Robert Morin (Lee, Mass.) to open up a 56-49 advantage.   Bridgewater answered by scoring nine straight points capped off by a Murphy layup with 2:38 remaining as the Bears took their first lead (58-56) since midway through the first half.

The Bears would have three opportunities to extend their advantage but missed three straight shots.  Ortiz drained a three with just over a minute left to play to reclaim the lead for the Vikings, 59-58.  On the ensuing possession, Gibson made 1 of 2 free throws to knot the score at 59-59.

With the shot clock winding down, White drove the lane and was fouled with 14 seconds left. He made the first free throw to put Salem back on top, 60-59, but missed the second. The Bears had a chance to win the game but Murphy's three-point attempt at the buzzer did not find the mark.

Salem shot 49% (23-47) from the floor and 35% (7-20) from three-point.  The Vikings held a 35-26 rebounding advantage.  Bridgewater connected on 41% (22-54) of its' field goal attempts, but finished just 3-for-15 (20%) from behind the arc. The Bears forced 21 turnovers.

In upcoming action, Bridgewater entertains MASCAC rival Fitchburg State University on Thursday night at 7:30.  Salem hosts conference foe MCLA on Tuesday evening also at 7:30.

Notes: With his 14 points, Monteiro increased his career total to 976. He has 487 points in two seasons at BSU and tallied 489 points in two seasons at Wentworth (2008-2010).