WALTHAM, Mass. – Michael Bourke (South Orange, N.J./The Hun School of Princeton) led four New Haven players in double figures with 20 points, but the University of New Haven men's basketball team took a 78-74 overtime loss to the Bentley Falcons in a Northeast-10 Conference game on Saturday afternoon. The Chargers are now 7-7 with a 2-6 record in the NE10.

New Haven started the game hot from the field, hitting nine of its first 14 shots including four from beyond the arc to open a 22-9 lead midway through the first half. Bourke and Danny Upchurch (Bridgeport, Conn./Notre Dame Catholic) keyed the outside attack with a pair of treys each. Roy Kane, Jr. (Norwalk, Conn./Norwalk) contributed, knocking down all three of his shots from two-point range. Bentley came back, going on a 7-0 run in the next four minutes before a pair of Mihailo Vasic (Novi Sad, Serbia) free throws and a Bourke three pushed the New Haven lead up to 27-19 at the 4:37 mark. A late Bentley spurt, keyed by a pair of Ryan Richmond triples sliced New Haven's lead to 32-29 at the half.

A back and forth beginning to the second half saw the Blue and Gold maintain its lead until the 11:58 mark when a Richmond jumper put the Falcons up 44-43. Trailing 51-46 at with 9:14 to go, New Haven responded, starting with a Tommy Hunt (Smithfield, R.I./St. Andrew's) three-pointer up against the shot clock. Following a defensive stop, Bourke connected on his fifth trey of the night and a bucket in the paint by Vasic put the Chargers up 54-51 in a matter of just 1:16. Neither team held more than a four point lead during the next seven minutes as the teams traded buckets down the stretch. Trailing 60-56, the Chargers went on an 8-2 run, capped by a fastbreak layup by Kane off a loose ball rebounds from Bourke to take a 64-62 lead with 11.8 seconds left. On the ensuing Falcons possession, Najee Larcher (Brooklyn, N.Y./Xaverian) blocked a potential game-winning three-pointer before getting whistled for a foul with 0.4 seconds left trying to block the tying layup. Richmond hit both free throws to send the game to overtime, tied at 64-64.

Bentley fired the opening salvo of the extra period and went up 71-67 two minutes in. Back-to-back baskets by Upchurch tied the game in a matter of 41 seconds. A pair of free throws and a layup gave the Falcons a 75-71 lead with 2:00 to go. The cushion was enough to allow Bentley to hold on for the win.

HIGHLIGHTS

• Four players scored in double figures, led by Bourke with 20. It was his second 20+ point game this season.
• Upchurch scored 17 points and had a career-high nine rebounds.
• Kane delivered a career-best 15 points to go along with a personal best tying eight rebounds.
• Vasic had 12 points and nine rebounds.

FIRST HALF NOTES

• Bourke netted 12 points in the first half, connecting on 3-for-5 shots from beyond the arc.
• Kane scored eight points and had three rebounds.
• Upchurch had right points and six rebounds.

SECOND HALF NOTES

• The second half featured four ties and four lead changes.
• Vasic scored eight of his points in the half.
• Neither team had a lead of more than five points.

UP NEXT
The Chargers return home to take on the Stonehill Skyhawks in a Northeast-10 Conference matchup. Tipoff is scheduled for 3:00 p.m.