Unbelievable: Unbeaten Bentley Earns 2nd Straight
Trip to Elite Eight, 88-72

Information Provided By Bentley Sports Information


WALTHAM, Mass. – Pick an adjective. Remarkable. Incredible. Crazy.

All of those apply to what the Bentley men’s basketball team achieved with an 88-72 win over Assumption College in the 2008 NCAA Division II Northeast Regional Championship game Tuesday night before a standing room only crowd of more than 3,200 at the Dana Center.

The victory not only earned the 33-0 and number one-ranked Falcons a return trip to the NCAA Division II Elite Eight, but broke the school record for wins in a season and the New England record for the longest winning streak in men’s basketball history.

Last year’s Bentley team, which won its first 32 games before losing in the opening round of the Elite Eight, owned both of those records. When his team broke the those records in 2007, the winning streak having stood since Bob Cousy was playing at Holy Cross , coach Jay Lawson said those marks probably wouldn’t be broken in his lifetime.

Instead, they fell just a little more than 52 weeks later, in Lawson’s 500th game as Bentley’s head coach.

Bentley, with five players scoring in double figures, led from the start, beginning with a fast-break three-pointer by sophomore guard Mike Quinn (Oakdale, Conn./Montville HS) 38 seconds into the game, and never trailed, the eighth time this season the Falcons have led from the opening basket.

Sophomore guard Jason Westrol (Brielle, N.J./Manasquan HS) led the Falcons with 22 points (one shy of his career-high), six rebounds, five assists and a career-best five steals, and Quinn had the finest game of his collegiate career. He scored 11 points in the first 7:20, helping the Falcons to a 22-10 start, and finished with a career-best 18 points on six-of-seven shooting with four threes.

However, it was six-foot-six senior forward Nate Fritsch (Durham, N.C./Woodberry Forest) who was selected as the tournament’s Most Outstanding Player. He nailed four three-pointers en route to 17 points, and also had six rebounds and three assists. In the tournament, he averaged 16.7 points, 6.3 rebounds and four assists while playing 79 minutes without a single turnover.

The three-ball was dropping for the Falcons Tuesday night, right from the start. Triples from Quinn, junior guard Lew Finnegan (Lexington/Lexington HS) and Fritsch in the first 3:22 produced an early 9-2 lead.

After a couple Greyhound jumpers, the Falcons embarked on a Quinn-fueled 13-4 spurt to open a 12-point lead after eight-and-a-half minutes. Quinn, in his first season of action after missing last year with a knee injury, had eight of the 13, and Fritsch finished it with his second trey.

Bentley, which led by 16 at the half (47-31), extended the advantage to 19, 57-38, three minutes into the second on a Fritsch three from well beyond the arc and fast-break lay-up by Westrol.

However, Assumption (24-11) was not about to go easily. Led by an 18-point second half by senior forward Greg Twomey (Groton), the Hounds ran off 12 straight points to close to within seven, 57-50. Twomey, who finished with 20, had half of the 12 with a pair of three-pointers. Assumption eventually got as close as four, 64-60 with 7:57 left on a Twomey 15-footer.

Bentley, a sensational 116-16 over the last four seasons, answered with an 8-4 spurt, with Finnegan scoring five and Westrol hitting a triple, to restore the differential to eight, 72-64, with 5:33 left.

Quinn drained a three off a fast-break with 3:52 left, making it a ten-point game, 77-67, and the Falcons wrapped up their 63rd straight win over a Northeast Region opponent by making 11 of 12 free throws in the final 2:23.

Westrol, Fritsch and Quinn were joined in doubles by senior guard Yusuf Abdul-Ali (Springfield/New Leadership Charter School) and Finnegan. Abdul-Ali, who’ll be returning to his hometown for next week’s Elite Eight, had 15 points, four assists and four rebounds, and Finnegan added 10 points and five boards.

Bentley shot 45 percent overall and made 14 of its 28 three-point attempts, outscoring the Hounds 42-14 from outside the arc. The Falcons also made 11 more free throws (18-7) and took exceptional care of the basketball, committing just five turnovers.

Assumption shot slightly better, 45.5 percent, but sank only five of 18 from three and made only seven of 13 free throws. Twomey, in his final collegiate game, finished 8 of 12 from the floor with three treys.

Bentley, in the opening round of the Elite Eight, will face South Region champion North Alabama, a 97-75 winner over Benedict, next Wednesday at the MassMutual Center in Springfield.