SMITHFIELD, R.I. - Fresh off the Terriers' second Northeast Conference win of the season at FDU, the St. Francis Brooklyn men's basketball team continued its weekend road trip to face the second-place Bryant Bulldogs.
Despite a 15-4 SFBK run to open the second half, the Bulldogs were able to flash their up-tempo offense on their home court, as Bryant (9-9, 6-1 NEC) scored the win over the Terriers (5-14, 2-6 NEC), 68-85.
Patrick Emilien led SFBK in scoring with 17 points, and notched his third double-double in NEC play, and fourth overall, with 12 rebounds.
HOW IT HAPPENED
After Bryant scored the first basket of the game, SFBK kicked off their scoring with three consecutive baskets to take an early 7-3 lead. The Bulldogs retook the lead in the following minutes, but the Terriers battled to keep the Bryant lead to two possessions or less in the first eight minutes.
A Patrick Emilien layup got the Bryant lead to just four points, 20-16, exiting the under-12 timeout.
Coming out of that break, Bryant was able to settle in to its signature frenetic offensive pace. The Bulldogs ran up a 23-8 run out of the time out that opened their lead to as 21 points with 6:07 remaining in the first half.
Bryant led at halftime, 51-33.
The second half opened with a much different scoring flow, as the Terriers held Bryant scoreless in the opening two minutes of the game.
Tedrick Wilcox Jr. opened the second half scoring with one of his two three-pointers in the game, making it 51-36 with 19:09 to play. That basket sparked a 15-4 run that cut the Bulldogs lead to as few as seven points with 15:12 remaining.
During that run, Jack Hemphill made consecutive three pointers after the Terriers gave up the first Bryant field goal of the second half. Patrick Emilien and Rob Higgins were a combined 4-5 from the free throw line during that stretch, including two technical free throws.
The Bulldogs regained their pace offensively from there, and worked a 10-5 run to lead 65-53 at the under-12 media timeout.
Higgins dropped another pair of technical free throws with 8:55 to play to cut it to a 14-point deficit.
The Bryant advantage would climb to as many as 17 points, as the Bulldogs took the victory, 85-68.
TEAM LEADERS
Four Terriers hit high marks for the season or their career in different categories on Sunday.
Patrick Emilien recorded his fourth double-double this season with 17 points and a career-high 12 rebounds. This is first double-double since Jan. 8, and his third since the beginning of NEC play.
Rob Higgins was just behind with 15 points, and a career-high 8 assists. His 8 assists are also the most in a single game by a Terrier this season.
Jack Hemphill notched a season-high 13 points (5-11 FG, 3-5 3PT). His five made field goals and 60.0% three-point shooting are high marks for his season in each category.
Tedrick Wilcox Jr. also dropped his fourth double-double of the season against Bryant. The Pawtucket, R.I. native finished with 11 points and 13 rebounds in his first trip back to his home state as Terrier, adding a season-high 4 assists. The 13 rebounds match a career high for Wilcox, and are his most on a Division I roster.
NEXT UP: The Terriers continue their three-game road trip on Jan. 27, with their only trip to Sacred Heart of the regular season. Tip-off from the Pitt Center in Fairfield is scheduled for 7:00 p.m. and the game will stream live on NEC Front Row.
