Hausman connected on 11- of-16 field-goal attempts and added five rebounds and a pair of assists. Junior forward Matt Palecki added 16 points, seven boards, two assists and two blocked shots for the visiting Polar Bears, who improved to 8-3 on the season. Senior forward Keegan Pieri chipped in 11 points, nine rebounds, five assists and three blocks, while senior center John Swords notched 12 points, seven boards, two assists and three blocks.
The host Bears also had four players finish in doublefigure scoring, led by 19 points from Michael Lofton. Lofton also paced BSU with nine rebounds, five assists, two blocks and two steals.
Bowdoin opened up an 18- point first-half lead, only to see Bridgewater State use a 12-3 run before halftime to cut the lead to 43-34 at the intermission.
Bridgewater carried the momentum into the second half as the Bears outscored the Polar Bears 14-4 over the first four minutes and took their first lead of the game, 48-47, on a DeMelo 3-pointer at the 16:04 mark.
Hausman reclaimed the lead for the Polar Bears with a short jumper and Bowdoin maintained the lead until the final minutes.
Trailing 68-59 with under five minutes remaining, Bridgewater came roaring back. DeMelo buried a jumper and followed that up with a trey to cut the deficit to 68-64. Following a turnover, guard Rocky DeAndrade drained a 3- pointer to make it a onepoint game, 68-67, with under three minutes remaining.
After each team exchanged scoreless possessions, Pieri made one of two free throws to give Bowdoin a 69-67 lead. A Gibson jumper tied the score at 69- all with 1:13 left in regulation. Palecki answered with an uncontested lay-up, but Gibson responded by knocking down a pair of free throws with just 28 seconds on the clock. The Polar Bears looked as though they might win the game at the free-throw line as a foul was called as time expired. After a brief conversation among the officials, the foul was determined to be on the floor and the Bears were under the limit as the game headed to overtime.
Bowdoin tallied the first four points of the extra session, but the BSU responded with a DeMelo trifecta and a Lofton lay-up to give the Bears their first lead (76-75) since early in the second half.
A 3-pointer by Hausman was answered by Gibson as the game was knotted at 78- 78 with under two minutes. The Bears went cold from there. Swords knocked down a lay-up to put the Polar Bears back on top, 80-78 with 1:06 left to play. The Bears had two chances to either tie the game or take the lead, but a DeMelo runner was blocked by Swords and a long 3-pointer with the shot clock winding down was short.
The Bears fouled right away and got the break they needed as the front end of a one-on-one was missed. But, Swords corralled the offensive rebound and laid it in to give the visitors the 82-78 lead with just 26 seconds on the clock. After a missed BSU 3-pointer, Palecki knocked down a pair of free throws to ice the game.
The Polar Bears travel to NESCAC foe Connecticut College on Friday night to take on the Camels at 7 p.m.
Women’s basketball
The Polar Bears dominated the second half of a 70-49 win over Emmanuel College on Tuesday night at the Jean Yawkey Center.
Bowdoin improved to 11-2 with the win. Bowdoin now holds an 11-3 all-time record versus the Saints. The nonconference loss opened up second semester action for Emmanuel, which fell to 5-8.
Bowdoin’s balanced attack featured four players scoring in double-figures, led by Sara Binkhorst’s 19 points, four rebounds and four assists. Marle Curle finished with 17 points and seven boards, including going 3-for-3 from behind the arc. Megan Phelps and Shannon Brady chipped in with 13 and 10 points, respectively.
The opening half featured five lead changes and four ties before Bowdoin took over for good with 2:58 left in the first half.
Trailing 19-15 late in the opening half, Curle drained consecutive 3-balls, knotting the contest at 21-all with four minutes to play in the half. Moments later, Phelps dialed in from downtown to give Bowdoin a 26-23 lead, an advantage.
Leading 32-28 at intermission, Bowdoin opened the second half on a 9-2 run, forcing a quick timeout by the Saints, who found themselves down, 41-30, six minutes into the period. Emmanuel trimmed the lead to seven points 43-36, with 11:15 to go.
Bowdoin’s defense clamped down from there, permitting just one field goal over the ensuing six minutes as the Polar Bears went on a 14-5 run. Following a baseline trey by Binkhorst with 6:02 remaining, the Polar Bears stretched their lead to 62-44.
The Polar Bears will return to action on Friday, hosting Connecticut College at 7 p.m.
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