Bryant Rolls NJIT To Remain in First Place in America East

Earl Timberlake and Barry Evans each posted double-doubles as the Bryant basketball team raced to an 88-66 victory over NJIT on Thursday night at the Chace Athletic Center.

With the win, the Bulldogs improve to 16-10 overall and 10-1 in America East play. The Black and Gold wrap up their weekend with a home game vs UMBC on Saturday (Feb. 15). Tip is set for 1:00 p.m.

Timberlake finished with 21 points (10-11 FG) and 10 boards, while Evans added 15 points, 10 rebounds, five assists and two steals. Connor Withers (12 pts, 7 ast, 3 stl), Kvonn Cramer (12 pts) and Rafael Pinzon (11 pts) all finished in double figures. Pinzon surpassed 1,000 career points with a second-half three-point field goal.

Game Information
Bryant 88, NJIT 66
Records: Bryant 16-10, 10-1 | NJIT 5-21, 2-9
Location: Chace Athletic Center (Smithfield, R.I.)
Attendance: 873

Key Moments
Bryant used a 23-10 run over the final 10 minutes of the first half to build a 46-29 lead at the break.
How it Happened
NJIT came out strong, hitting two early threes to build a 6-2 lead.
Evans would score Bryant’s first six points before Withers followed with five of his own. Withers knocked down two free throws and then sank a transition three to give the Bulldogs an 11-9 lead.
Evans knocked down his second three of the night to make it a seven-point game (20-13) with 11:44 left.
The Highlanders would cut the deficit to four before Bryant closed the half on a 23-10 run.
The Black and Gold made 9-of-16 from the field and held the Highlanders to just 4-of-16 over the final 10:13 of the half.
Evans got the run started with a steal and one-handed slam. Withers then rattled home a three to make it 32-24 with 7:36 left.
Timberlake then brought the Chace to life as he threw down a one-handed hammer on his NJIT defender.
Pinzon then found the scoreboard as he scored five quick points to push Bryant’s lead to double digits, 42-29.
The Bulldogs closed the half with a perfectly executed play that saw Timberlake find a curling Evans with a lob at the rim.
Bryant led, 46-29, at the break.
Timberlake opened the second half with four quick points as Bryant built its lead.
Timberlake continued to pour it on as he had his way in the lane, surpassing the 20-point mark with a spin and finish with 10:35 left.
Jakai Robinson would get into the act, scoring at the rim on consecutive trips to force an NJIT timeout.
Cramer then brough the house down as he took an outlet from Evans and threw down a thunderous one-handed slam on his defender.
Pinzon then took center stage as he drilled a three from the top with 4:22 left to surpass 1,000 career points.
Stats
Bryant finished the game 37-of-69 (53.6 percent) from the field, 6-of-21 (28.6 percent) from three and 8-of-17 (47.1 percent) from the line.
Bryant held a 44-40 edge on the glass.
The Bulldogs had 19 assists and turned the ball over just eight times.
Timberlake posted 21 points on 10-of-11 shooting from the floor. He added 10 boards, three assists and two blocks.
Evans collected a double-double with 15 points and 10 boards. He added five assists and two steals.
Withers posted 12 points, three boards, seven assists, three steals and two blocks.
Cramer collected 12 points off the bench.
Pinzon finished with 11 points on 3-of-6 shooting from three. He added three assists and two steals.
Game Notes
Bryant improves to 7-1 vs NJIT at the DI level. The Bulldogs have won each of the last seven games in the series, including all six meetings as America East foes.
The Bulldogs are now 7-3 at home this season. Bryant is 51-12 at home and 53-22 in league play since the start of the 2020-21 season.
Bryant has now scored 80+ points in 8-of-11 league games. The Black and Gold own a league-best 14.9 scoring differential.
Bryant blocked six shots and is averaging a league-best 7.2 blocks per game in league play.
Timberlake recorded his 10th double-double of the year and the 30th of his career.
Timberlake finished in double-figures for the 22nd time this season and the 75th time in his career.
With 10 rebounds, Timberlake now has 715 in his career, passing Dan Garvin (710) for third in DI program history.
Withers finished in double figures for the 15th time this year and the 55th time in his career.
Withers has scored in double figures in all 11 AE games.
Withers posted a season-high with seven assists. He is just 11 assists shy of 300 in his career.
Evans posted his fifth double-double of the year. He has scored in double figures in 20 games this year and 22 times in his career.
Evans matched his season high with five assists.
Cramer finished in double figures in the seventh time this year and the 20th time in his career.
Pinzon finished in double figures for the 20th time this year and the 49th time in his career.
Pinzon surpassed 1,000 career points in the game. He has scored 844 of his 1,001 career points as a Bulldog.
Up Next
Bryant is back at home on Saturday (Feb. 15) to host UMBC. Tip is set for 1:00 p.m.