SMITHFIELD, R.I. - Behind Nick DelTufo's career-high 15 points, and Will Campbell's four, second-half three-pointers, Monmouth rallied for a 50-46 road Northeast Conference victory at Bryant on Saturday afternoon.
The Hawks, who trailed by as many as 11 points in the first half, improved to 10-12 overall with the win, and 6-4 in conference play. Campbell, who went 4-for-6 from beyond the arc, added 15 points, while Ed Waite chipped in seven points and six rebounds, Whitney Coleman added six points, six boards and four assists, and Dutch Gaitley hauled down eight rebounds.
Bryant, which ran the shot clock down in the first two possessions, grabbed a 9-2 edge at 14:37 on back-to-back Vlad Kondratyev post moves, and increased the lead to 12-2 on Chris Birrell's wing three-pointer with 14:10 left.
Monmouth halted Bryant's 9-0 spurt when Waite was successful on a traditional three-point play, trimming the lead to 12-5, but the Bulldogs claimed an 18-7 cushion with 12:22 remaining on Birrell's third trifecta.
DelTufo's jumper from the top of the key started a 6-1 Monmouth spurt, and the Hawks pulled within 21-16 on DelTufo's three-pointer from straight away, with 7:20 left.
The Hawks, who got nine straight points from DelTufo, climbed within 23-19 on DelTufo's layup with 4:17 showing.
Monmouth ran its spurt to 14-5 over a span of nearly 10 minutes to claw within 23-21 on Waite's baseline spin and lay-in with 2:37 remaining until the break, but the Bulldogs notched the final four points of the half, including Birrell's fourth trey, to claim a 27-21 lead at the intermission.
MU, which opened the second half 0-for-5, fell behind 29-21 in the opening minute, but a pair of DelTufo free throws at 15:48, pulled the Hawks within 29-23.
After starting 0-for-8 from the floor, Coleman's pull-up jumper in the lane allowed the Hawks to climb within 29-25 with 13:11 showing, and a Mike Myers Keitt basket made the score 30-27 with 11:14 left.
The Hawks, who once trailed by as many as 11, knotted the score at 30-30 after DelTufo's offensive rebound allowed Campbell to drill a game-tying corner three-pointer with 10:30 remaining.
Following a Kondratyev basket, Campbell canned a three from the opposite corner to coral a 33-32 lead for the Hawks with 9:15 left, and Campbell's third trifecta pushed Monmouth ahead, 38-35, with 7:57 on the clock.
After Kondratyev connected on four free throws to reclaim the lead for BU, 39-38, with 5:58 left, Campbell drilled his fourth trifecta of the half and Coleman's jumper, with 4:50 showing, gave Monmouth a 43-39 advantage.
Following a defensive stop, the Blue and White jumped in front 45-39, with 2:05 remaining, when Coleman drained a short jumper off an inbounds play.
In the next trip down the floor, Monmouth's pressure caused a turnover and DelTufo answered with a pair of free throws to push the lead to 47-39 with 1:26 left.
Bryant responded with two straight three-pointers to pull within 47-45 with 37.9 ticks left, but James Hett was successful on both ends of a one-and-one with 33.2 seconds left to give the Hawks 49-45 edge.
After a Monmouth foul was whistled with 19.8 seconds left, Adam Parzych hit the first foul shot, but his second miss was hauled in by Gaitley, who was immediately fouled. After Gaitley missed the first attempt, his second made the score 50-46 with 18.2 seconds left, as the Hawks held on for the four-point win.
The Hawks, who held a 40-27 advantage off the glass, shot 36.4% from the field, which included 40.0% success rate in the second half.
Bryant, which is 0-22 overall, and lost 23 straight contests dating back to last season, was led by Birrell's 15 points, while Kondratyev added 13 points and six rebounds.
Monmouth returns to action on Thursday, February 4, when the Hawks travel to face Fairleigh Dickinson University in Northeast Conference play. Tip off in Stratis Arena is set for 7:30 p.m.
