X-Men earn exhibition win over Bryant

ST. FRANCIS XAVIER 71, BRYANT 64

SMITHFIELD, R.I.  – Christian Upshaw scored a game-high 20 points including two free throws with 12 seconds left to help visiting St. Francis Xavier preserve a 71-64 win over Bryant University in a men’s basketball exhibition game Saturday afternoon at the Chace Athletic Center. 

StFX shot 50 percent from the floor in the game including 52 percent in the second half. The Nova Scotia based X-Men, who will scrimmage Boston College Sunday at Conte Forum (2 p.m.), got 18 points from guard Tyler Richards and 10 points and five rebounds from Jeremy Dunn off the bench to pull out the win.  Richards, a senior from Halifax, NS, made all five 3-point attempts and was 6 of 9 shooting from the floor.

Bryant, which got 16 points each from forward Nick Pontes (New Bedford, MA) and Cecil Gresham (Bloomfield, CT), trailed 36-27 at the half, but used good defensive pressure to pull even on a three from Chris Birrell (Scituate, RI), knotting things up at 54-54 with 6:15 left.

But Sean Nickel came right back and drained a three of his own to put the X-Men back on top for good.  A Pontes jumper in the lane with 2:57 pulled Bryant to within 62-61, but that would be as close as the Bulldogs would get as Upshaw and Dunn made good on their free throws down the stretch.

Bryant shot 45.5 percent from the floor in the game. Birrell finished with eight points and 10 assists plus five steals in 32 minutes. 

Courtesy Jason Sullivan, Bryant College Sports Information