Men's Basketball Opens Northeast Conference Play Saturday at Bryant

The Central Connecticut men's basketball team will begin its Northeast Conference schedule with a trip to Bryant on Saturday afternoon. The Blue Devils and Bulldogs will tipoff at 4:00 p.m. at the Chace Athletic Center in a game that can be watched on NECFrontrow.com. 

GAMEDAY INFORMATION
CCSU (1-10) at Bryant (3-10) |  4:00 PM  |  Video  |  Live Stats  |  Listen (News Radio 1410/ESPN Radio 1300)

Today's Game • Central Connecticut opens the conference portion of the schedule at Bryant and opens a swing of four games in eight days to open the NEC slate. The Blue Devils will play three of its firs four league contests away from home.

Series Notes: • Series Tied: 13-13
• First Meeting: 1973-74 (CCSU, 89-87)
• Last Meeting: Feb. 26, 2015 (Bryant, 77-69)
• Last CCSU Win: Jan. 19, 2012 (69-51)

Rules Refresher • The NCAA has put out videos to give fans and media clarification and examples of some of the rules to be aware of during the season. As the conference portion of the schedule begins, take the chance to watch the video here.

Last Time Out • Central fell to Yale at home on Wednesday night, 62-42, in its final non-conference game of the season. The Blue Devils were led by freshmen Austin Nehls and Malik Toppin who had 10 points apiece in the loss. Toppin set a career-high shooting 5-for-5 from the field and also grabbed a personal-best seven rebounds. Senior Brandon Peel added eight points and seven boards.

The Blue Devils quickly climbed out to a 7-2 lead before the Bulldogs held CCSU scoreless over the next eight minutes and used a 17-0 run to build a 19-7 lead. CCSU cut the lead to eight at 34-26 to open the second half, but Yale responded with the next eight points to push the lead back to 42-26 with under 13 minutes to play. Yale used a 14-2 run to push the lead to 48-28.

Central held Yale to just 38.1 percent shooting from the field, but the Bulldogs used a 51-28 margin on the glass that included 21 offensive rebounds that were turned into 19 second chance points to generate much of its offense.

Scouting Bryant • Bryant is coming off a 62-60 win at Dartmouth on New Year's Eve that snapped a nine-game losing streak. The Bulldogs are playing their first home game since December 8. Sophomore Hunter Ware leads three Bulldogs in double-figures with 14.8 points per game. Junior Dan Garvin, a preseason All-NEC pick, is the teams top rebounder with 8.4 per game. He adds 1.4 blocked shots and 10.3 points per game. 

Next Up • Central Connecticut hosts LIU Brooklyn on Monday, Jan. 4, in a 7:03 p.m. game that will be televised on MSG Network and Fox College Sports. The Blue Devils will then play two straight NEC games on the road the following weekend.