STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. - - A second half comeback by the Wilmington University men's basketball team against the nationally ranked No. 10/14 Bentley Falcons ran out of steam, as Bentley held on for a 95-82 nonconference victory on Saturday afternoon to end the 2022 Tournament of Heroes on the campus of Staten Island.
The Wildcats (1-1) found themselves down by as many as 19 points in the second half but fought and scrapped their way back to within four points with 9:58 to play. But the comeback ran out of steam, as the Falcons (2-0) was able to bend but not break and then used foul shots down the stretch to extend the lead.
Bentley used an 11-4 run in the first half to take a its first double-digit lead of the game, 22-12, with 12:10 left before the half. Amiri Stewart hit a three-pointer but then the Falcons scored the next eight points to double up the Wildcats, 30-15. The first half lead grew to as large as 18 points as late as 1:55 to play, but then the Wildcats got an old-fashioned three-point play from Nalik Veasley and a three-pointer from Randy Rickards at the buzzer to cut the Falcons' lead to 14, 49-35, at the break.
Taalib Holloman and Rickards had back-to-back buckets to cut the deficit to 11 but then the Falcons rattled off eight straight to take a 19-point lead with 16:39 to play in regulation. The Wildcats answered with five straight points from Justin Thomas and then three straight three-pointers by Jordan Jackson, the last getting the Wildcats to within 62-55 with 13:36 showing on the clock.
Another three-pointer from Jackson brought the Wildcats to within 64-60 with 12:28 to play, but the Falcons answered with back-to-back buckets to take a 68-60 lead into the under 12-minute media timeout. Randy Rickards hit a pair from the foul line and then Amiri Stewart tipped in an offensive rebound the break and the Wildcats were only down 68-64 with 9:58 to play.
On the ensuing possession, Randy Rickards blocked a Falcon shot and the Wildcats came back the other way. Taalib Holloman was unable to hit a three-pointer in front of his team's bench and the Falcons came right down and scored to settle their emotions.
Caleb Matthews converted an old fashioned three-point play to bring the Wildcats to within 72-67, but Bentley stretched the lead back out to 10 at 79-69, with 5:03 to play, forcing the Wildcats into a timeout. Matthews hit a three-pointer to get to within eight, but experienced Falcons had an answer once again, hitting a three of their own to put the lead back into double digits, 85-74. The Wildcats could not get the deficit into single digits the rest of the way.
Jordan Jackson scored 15 of his team high 18 points in the second half, shooting 6-of-13 from three-point territory on the afternoon. Randy Rickards finished with 15 points, seven rebounds, and three blocks. Justin Thomas added 13 points and four assists while Nalik Veasley and Caleb Matthews added 11 points each in the loss.
The Wildcats return to Newark for their 2022-23 home opener on Wednesday, as they welcome Shippensburg to the WU Athletics Complex. The opening tip-off is set for 7:00 p.m.