Box Score WALTHAM, Mass. (Dec. 30, 2015) – The Molloy College men's basketball team only led two times over the course of 40 minutes as the Lions fell victim to a 91-58 loss at the hands of Bentley University on Wednesday (Dec. 30) at the Dana Athletic Center in Waltham, Mass.
Freshman guard
Curtis Jenkins (Farmingdale, N.Y.) gave Molloy (3-8) a 2-0 lead in the first six seconds of the first half with an opening bucket, and senior guard
Brandon Williams (Baldwin, N.Y.) gave the Lions a 4-2 lead on a lay-up with 17:58 to play in the first half. That, however, would be the only leads for the maroon and white against a Bentley (9-2) team that torched the scorebook throughout the remainder of the contest. Seniors Tyler McFarland (Rockport, Maine) and Alex Furness (Wells, Maine) scored five straight points to give the Falcons a 7-4 lead and the hosts went on cruise control from there. After a lay-up from
Jaylen Morris (Amherst, N.Y.) brought the maroon and white within two at 14-12 with seven minutes gone by, the Lions were outscored by a 30-17 margin for the remainder of the first half, taking a 44-29 lead into the locker room. Bentley ended the opening frame of action on a 10-2 run over the final four minutes-plus, as the Falcons ended the first half with a lights-out 50% (15-30) performance from the field as well as a plus-eight (24-16) edge on rebounds.
The home side led by as much as 33 midway through the second half after junior guard Matt Barr (Stratham, N.H.) hit a jumper to give the Falcons a 72-39 lead. The story for Molloy ended up being positive play from members of the bench in the Lions' final non-conference contest of the season. Namely, sophomore guard
Adrian Denner (Franklin Square, N.Y.) turned in a fine performance off the bench with six points and two rebounds in 12 minutes of action in the contest.
For the game, Morris had yet another double-double with 17 points and 10 rebounds, adding a game-high three blocks to his efforts. Williams added 14 points and four steals, and the senior guard now stands at 995 career points to close out the 2015 portion of the season. Molloy shot 34% (23-68) from the field but was dreadfully cold from deep territory, hitting just three three-pointers in 22 attempts (14%). The Lions were also outrebounded by a minus-19 margin (50-31), and Bentley blistered the field by shooting 52% (34-66) from the field and 38% (9-24) from deep territory. The Falcons were led by McFarland's game-high 22 points, while Furness added 18. Barr and freshman Kyle Bouchard (Houlton, Maine) chipped in 10 points off the bench.
The Molloy College men's basketball team will open the 2016 calendar year on Wednesday (Jan. 6) when the Lions begin a seventeen-game East Coast Conference stint against rival LIU Post at 7:30 p.m.
