SMITHFIELD, R.I. – The Sacred Heart University did not trail once, as it defeated first place Bryant, 83-66, at the Chace Athletic Center on Saturday afternoon. The lone tie of the game occurred in the first half with 11:37 on the clock. After scoring just two points over his previous three games, Tevin Falzon put together a dominating stat line, leading the Pioneers with 19 points on 8-11 shooting, 10 rebounds, and five blocks, all in the second half, for his third double double of the season. Freshman Cane Broome added 18 points on 7-10 from the field and Evan Kelley scored 14. Steve Glowiak was three rebounds shy of his second straight double double, scoring 11 points. SHU shot 55.9 percent in its second straight win to up its record to 9-12 and 3-5 in the Northeast Conference. Dan Garvin led the Bulldogs with a game-high 20 points while Dynami Starks added 15. The loss snaps Bryant's five game conference win streak and brings its record to 9-9 and 6-2 in the league.

Trailing by double figures throughout much of the contest, the Bulldogs twice cut the lead to six points. The second occurrence came after Joe O'Shea's three point play with 5:27 remaining. The Pioneers ended the Bryant threat with eight unanswered to put the game away for good. After Kelley, Glowiak, and Falzon each scored, the lead reached 14, 74-60, when Phil Gaetano hit two free throws with 2:47 left in the game.

The Pioneers shot a season-best 8-15 from beyond the arch. In addition to the high percentage shooting, the SHU defense held the Bulldogs to just 38.2 percent (26-68) from the floor. Sacred Heart also outrebounded Bryant, 43-31. SHU's bench, led by Falzon and Glowiak, outscored the Bulldog bench 33-16.

Up 13 at the break, the lead stayed between eight and twelve for the first eight minutes out of the locker room. It was not until Starks hit back to back trifectas, the second with 12:29 on the clock, that Bryant was initially able to cut the lead to six. Falzon helped Sacred Heart get its lead back to double digits scoring four straight before Glowiak hit a triple to give SHU a, 59-46, advantage with 10:48 remaining. Broome hit another three-pointer just 44 second later to make the lead 13 again after Bosko Kostur had just completed a three-point play. Bryant responded with an, 11-4, surge to cut the deficit to six for the second time.  

15 of Falzon's points and ten of Broome's came after halftime, as the two combined to shoot 10-13. Gaetano and De'von Barnett each contributed eight points each, while Jordan Allen led SHU in assists for the first time this season with four. Barnett also added two blocks and two steals. Aside from Garvin and Starks, no other Bulldog scored more than seven. McLaughlin had seven and and a game-high six assists, while O'Shea tallied six points.

Eight different Pioneers scored in the first half, as SHU jumped out to a 14-7 lead 6:04 into the game after Jordan Allen's dunk. From there, the two teams both went on runs. First, Bryant scored seven of the next nine over the next 2:19 for the contest's only tie. After that basket, the Pioneers ended the half on a 25-12 run.

Glowiak first responded with a 6-0 run on his own, hitting back to back three-point baskets less than a minute apart to regain a six point lead just 1:31 later. After a McBride trifecta, SHU scored five in a row, as a Gaetano three with 8:40 on the clock capped an 11-2 flurry and brought the score to 27-19. Bryant would get within five twice, on the next two possessions, but Sacred Heart responded with baskets each time. After the second Bryant basket got the Bulldogs within five again, 29-24, with 7:17 on the clock, SHU went into the locker room outscoring BU 12-4 to take its largest lead of the first half. Broome hit a three-pointer 1:20 before the break and then Kelley made the final basket, a layup, with 49 seconds left to bring the score to 41-28

Sacred Heart will look for its third straight win at Wagner on Thursday night. The Seahawks have three of four conference matchups to improve to 4-3 in league play and 6-12 overall ahead of their game tonight with Central Connecticut State.