HAMDEN, Conn. – The Bryant men's basketball team fell to Quinnipiac, 66-56, in the first game of the America East-Metro Challenge on Thursday night at M&T Bank Arena.
With the loss, the Bulldogs are 1-1 on the season. Bryant returns to the Chace Athletic Center on Sunday afternoon as it hosts Fairfield in the final game of the AE-Metro Challenge.
Quinnipiac opened a tight game with a 20-10 run in the middle stages of the second half. The Bulldogs would pull within six in the final minute but get no closer.
Keegan Harvey led Bryant with 14 points, while
Onyx Nnani chipped in 13.
Andre Pasha finished with eight points and eight boards.
Game Information
Quinnipiac 66, Bryant 56
Records: Bryant 1-1| Quinnipiac 1-1
Location: M&T Bank Center (Hamden, Conn.)
Attendance: 600
Key Moments
- Keith McKnight ignited Quinnipiac's decisive run with a dunk and a wing triple.
How it Happened
- The two teams traded threes to open the scoring, setting the stage for an exciting Thursday night in Hamden.
- Harvey scored each of Bryant's first five points, while Nnani followed with the next four to give Bryant a 9-5 lead.
- Tayeshawn Cunningham-Pemberton hit back-to-back threes for the first six of his 13 first-half points to give the Bobcats an 11-10 lead.
- Roi Behar's first three of the night gave Bryant a 21-19 lead at the 9:30 mark. Andre Pasha followed with a hook shot to make it a four-point game, Bryant's largest lead of the half.
- Quinnipiac would rally to take a 29-26 lead before Tabales rattled home a three at the 1:28 mark.
- The Bobcats, however, would score twice in the final minute to take a 33-29 lead into the break.
- Bryant opened the second half 2-of-7 from the field but was able to pull within a point before Quinnipiac used a quick 5-0 run to force a timeout at the 16:12 mark.
- The Bobcats would extend their lead to 10, 48-38, at the 11:54 mark thanks to an 8-2 run.
- A thunderous dunk and a three from Keith McKnight would push the Bobcat lead to 14, 60-46, at the 6:41 mark.
- Bryant would cut the deficit to single digits with 5:44 remaining but would go scoreless until a Nnani putback with 1:18 left.
- Quinnipiac then sealed the game from the foul line.
Stats
- Bryant finished the game 21-of-61 (34.4 percent) from the field, 7-of-30 (23.3 percent) from three and 7-of-13 (53.8 percent) from the line.
- Quinnipiac held a 38-29 edge on the glass and a slim 26-22 edge in paint scoring.
- The Bulldogs forced 16 turnovers.
- Harvey finished with 14 points on 6-of-12 shooting from the field. He added five rebounds, two steals and two blocks.
- Nnani posted 13 points on 4-of-9 shooting.
- Pasha finished with eight and eight.
- Cunningham-Pemberton (17) and McKnight (16) combined for 33 of Quinnipiac's 66 points.
- The Bobcats finished the game 8-of-15 from three.
Game Notes
- Bryant is now 4-7 in the Division I series with Quinnipiac. The Bobcats have won each of the last
- Harvey finished in double figures for the second-straight game to open the year. He has 18 career double-figure scoring games.
- Nnani has posted 13 points in each of his first two games with the Black and Gold.
- Elijah Crispin recorded his first collegiate points with a driving layup in the second half.
Up Next
Bryant closes out the AE-Metro Challenge on Sunday, November 8 when it hosts Fairfield at the Chace Athletic Center. Tip is set for 1:00 p.m.
