Men's Basketball Struggles With Bears On The Road

NORTON, Mass. - The Anna Maria College men's basketball team fell to Bridgewater State University, 89-64, on the second and final day of the Wheaton Invitational, hosted by Wheaton College (Mass.). 

The Bears improve to 2-0, while the AMCATS dip to 0-2.

Bridgewater State was led by sophomore Josh Campbell (Plymouth, Ma.). Campbell poured in a game-high 21 points off of a 8-14 shooting performance from the field. The AMCATS stuck with the Bears early in the first half, neither team led by more than two points until graduate student guard Noah Downing (Brockton, Mass.) knocked down a jumper with 13:13 remaining in the first half to give Bridgewater State an 18-15 advantage. 

Gabriel Armstead (Dallas, Ga.) finished with a team-high 16 points for Anna Maria, as the only player in double-figures for the AMCATS. After the game Armstead was named to the Wheaton College All-Invitational team. 

Turnovers plagued Anna Maria. The AMCATS turned the ball over 26 times which resulted in 27 points for the Bears and also sparked a 14-0 run midway through the first half in which Bridgewater State never looked back. 

Bridgewater State took a 13-point lead into the locker room and eventually took its biggest lead at 25 points with just fifty seconds to go in regulation. Anna Maria was never able to get into rhythm with their offense, shooting just 21-56 from the field and 4-24 from three-point territory. 

Helping out Campbell and also in double figures for the Bears was junior guard Dante Kikuba (Framingham, Mass.) with 14 points, first year guard Jamaal McConnell (Boston, Mass.) with 13 points on 6-9 shooting, and junior center Samuel Omisore (Boston, Mass.), who came off the bench and finished the night with 12 points. 

Anna Maria will return to the floor Wednesday night when they host Gordon College at 6:00 p.m.