SMITHFIELD, R.I. – Khalil Williams recorded a career-high 15 points in his first-career start to lift the Bryant men's basketball team to a 73-67 victory over Maine on Saturday afternoon at the Chace Athletic Center.
 
With the win, the Bulldogs improve to 8-16 overall and 4-6 in league play. Bryant will play its next two games on the road, traveling to UMass Lowell and Vermont next week.
 
Bryant recovered from a slow start and then held off the Black Bears down the stretch on Saturday. The Bulldogs trailed by nine early and then built what proved to be an insurmountable nine-point edge in the second half. Bryant won the game at the line as it made 21-of-26 free throws, while Maine finished 18-of-30.
 
Making his first career start, Williams finished with 15 points on 4-of-5 shooting from three, four rebounds and three assists in 29 minutes. Timofei Rudovskii led Bryant with 16 points (4-10 FG, 7-8 FT), while Keegan Harvey collected 12 points and eight boards. Jakai Robinson was Bryant's fourth in double figures, finishing with 11 and six.

Game Information
Bryant 73, Maine 67
Records: Bryant 8-16, 4-6 | Maine 6-19, 4-6
Location: Chace Athletic Center (Smithfield, R.I.)
Attendance: 575

Key Moments

• Harvey grabbed an offensive rebound and put it back in with a reverse to give Bryant a 68-64 lead with 1:10 left.

How it Happened

• Maine grabbed an early 6-1 lead before Williams knocked down a three from the top, his first made three since opening night at Siena.
• It was one good point of an otherwise slow start for the Bulldogs who went 1-of-5 from the field and turned it over five times in the first seven minutes.
• Maine took advantage, starting 4-of-7 and building a 13-4 lead.
• Bryant would respond with a 12-3 run to tie the game at 16-16 with 7:51 remaining.
• Robinson helped start the run, finishing through contact for a three-point play. Williams' second three of the game made it a one-point game before back-to-back baseline cuts from Sims and Harvey tied the game.
• Bryant's run would extend to 19-3 after Williams swished his third three of the half and Rudovskii drove through the lane for two more to make it 23-16. The Bulldogs held Maine to just 1-of-9 from the field during the stretch.
• Three free throws from Rudovskii and a Robinson offensive putback pushed Bryant's lead to nine, 31-22, with 1:14 to go.
• Maine would close the half on a 5-1 run as Bryant took a 32-27 edge to the break.
• The Black Bears would cut it to two (34-32) on the first two possession of the second half a Grey hit a corner three before finishing inside.
• Maine would tie the game at 34-34 before Davis broke the tie with his first three of the afternoon.
• A Davis putback gave Bryant a five-point edge on the next possession.
• Maine would close the deficit to one but Rudovskii answered with a strong drive to his left before finishing with his right through contact for a three-point play.
• Bryant's lead stood at 54-50 with 7:42 remaining.
• After missing most of the half due to foul trouble, Williams came off the bench to drill a three from the top and give Bryant a 61-54 lead with 4:58 left.
• Two free throws from Akoue made it a nine-point game but the Black Bears used an 8-1 run to cut the deficit to two, 64-62, with 2:32 left.
• Harvey, however, grabbed an offensive rebound and reversed it home to give Bryant breathing room with 1:10 left.
• Williams would then hit three free throws before feeding Davis for a game-clinching slam.

Stats

• Bryant finished the game 23-of-50 (46.0 percent) from the field, 6-of-17 (35.3 percent) from three and 21-of-26 (80.0 percent) from the line.
• Bryant held a 39-23 edge on the glass and a 32-20 edge in paint scoring.
• The Bulldogs (20) and Black Bears (21) combined for 41 fouls.
• Williams posted 15 points on 4-of-5 shooting from three. He added four boards and three assists.
• Rudovskii finished 4-of-10 from the field, 1-of-6 from three and 7-of-8 from the line. He added six boards.
• Harvey collected 12 points (4-5 FG, 4-4 FT), eight boards and two assists.
• Robinson posted 11 points and six rebounds.
• Sims finished with five points, seven rebounds and six assists.
• Logan Carey led four Black Bears in double figures with 16. The Black Bears shot 45 percent from the field, 32 percent from three and just 18-of-30 (60.0 percent) from the line.

Game Notes

• Bryant is now 8-2 against, including a perfect 6-0 at the Chace Athletic Center.
• The Bulldogs are now 7-4 at home this year.
• Bryant is 79-27 at home, including a 47-17 league record, since the start of the 18-19 season.
• Rudovskii posted his 20^th double-figure scoring effort of the year. He joins Alex Francis (22) as the only freshmen in DI program history with 20+ double-figure scoring games.
• Harvey finished in double figures for the sixth time in the last seven games.
• Sims set a new season high in assists with six.
• Williams finished in double figures for the second time this year and the first time since opening night.
• Williams went 3-of-4 from three on opening night but had gone 0-of-17 from three prior to Saturday's game.
• Williams set career highs in both points (15) and threes (4).
• Robinson finished in double figures for the second time this year and the seventh time in his career.

Up Next
Bryant hits the road for a pair of games next week, traveling to UMass Lowell (Feb. 12) and Vermont (Feb. 14).