Monks Eliminated in First Round of NCAA Tournament

Bridgewater State (21-6) defeated Saint Joseph’s (21-8), 95-79, in the opening round of the NCAA DIII Tournament on Thursday evening. Tyler Kelley ‘11 (Saco, ME) had 16 points to lead four SJC players who reached double figures. The Bears, who will travel to Middlebury College on Saturday for a second round contest, shot 66.7% from the field overall and 73.1% in the second stanza in the win.

SJC forward Chris Davis ‘11 (New York, NY) kept the Monks in the game with 11 first half points and a perfect 3-3 effort from beyond the arc. Davis finished the game with 14 points and four rebounds. Ray Eatmon ‘10 (Huntington, NY) added 13 points and eight boards, Elbie Murphy ‘09 (Loudonville, NY) had 10 points, eight assists and four steals and Scot Vachon ‘09 (Schenectady, NY) chipped in with eight points and four assists for St. Joe’s.

Bridgewater managed to score the most points by an SJC opponent this season, while the Bears’ success rate from the floor was also an opponent season-high. Bears forward Nicholas Motta ‘11 (Fairhaven, MA) netted a game-high 26 points off an 11-15 effort from the field and teammate Judah Jackson ‘11 (Everett, MA) notched 23 for the victors. Roland Millien ‘09 (Stoughton, MA) corralled 11 boards for Bridgewater, who have now won 15 of their last 16 games.

The contest was tight early on as Bridgewater held a three point cushion (13-10), until the Bears took control of the half as they went on a 12-5 run over a five minute stretch to build the advantage to 25-15 at 12:15. BSC continued to maintain the double-digit lead throughout the remainder of the opening stanza and took a 42-30 edge into the intermission. The Bears forced 13 SJC turnovers and captured seven steals in the first half.

Coming out of the locker room the two teams traded baskets throughout the first 14 minutes of the second period. With Bridgewater leading 81-64, St. Joseph’s used an 11-2 spurt to trim the lead to 83-75 with 2:58 remaining.

But Matt McLaughlin ‘10 (Rochester, MA) helped the Bears settle down, as he went 6-for-6 from the charity stripe to aid BSC as the team went 10-for-13 from the free throw line in the last 2½ minutes of the game to help close out the contest.

Little defense was played in the second period as the Bears connected for 19-for-26 of their field goals (73.1%) while the Monks were allowed to shoot at a 52.8% (19-36) clip. The Bears held a slight advantage on the glass, 32-28, in the game, while BSC edged the visitors on the scoreboard, 53-49, in the second stanza.

Eatmon collected eight caroms in the loss to become just the fourth player in the team’s storied history to notch 250 rebounds in a season. With 251 boards in 2009, is a member of an elite group with John Maloney ‘92 (282, 1991), Carl Howell ‘99 (278, 1999; 266, 1998) and Tom Ollman ’88 (251, 1988). His campaign tally ties Ollman for the fourth-highest single-season total in program history.

SJC guard Tyler Kelley shot 49.1% (54-110) from three-point range during his breakout sophomore season. The success rate is a new SJC single-season record and breaks teammate Alberto Rue's '10 (Jamaica Plain, MA) 47.4% effort, which was posted last season.

The loss signals the end of collegiate basketball for seniors Scot Vachon, Elbie Murphy, Mitch Ouellet (Fort Kent, ME), R.J. Mattison (Hamden, CT), Jay Tutwiler (Sarasota, FL) and Bobby Russo (Hartsdale, NY). In four seasons at St. Joe’s, the group helped the Monks post a 76-37 record and a .673 winning percentage.

Murphy caps his career with 1,464 points, good for eighth all-time at Saint Joseph’s, while Vachon dealt 365 helpers and ranks 10th in career assists.

The triumph marks the second time that BSC has advanced in the tournament. The Bears only other NCAA Tournament victory came during the 1982-83 season as BSC defeated Muskingum College, 56-54.