Box Score DUDLEY, Mass. (Jan. 14) – Paced by 16 points from first year guard Jalen Graham, the Nichols College men's basketball team defeated visiting University of New England, 76-70, in a Commonwealth Coast Conference game Saturday afternoon. The Bison, winners of three-straight for the first time since the end of the conference schedule in 2009-10, improve to 5-8 overall and 3-3 in league games. The Nor'easters are still looking for their first win of the year at 0-12 overall and 0-5 in conference action.

Graham's 16 led a 42-point effort from the Bison's bench. Sam Horning added 12 points on 4-of-5 shooting from three-point range.  Starting guard Justin Kuntz added 10 points and six rebounds , while starting senior Mike Salis filled the stats sheet with six key points at the line on 6-for-6 shooting and a game-high four steals.

Marcus Winn scored a game-high 17 points for the Nor'easters, while Ryan Knotek (Saratoga Springs, N.Y.) added 15. Alex Alsadi pulled down a game-best 12 boards.

Nichols led by as many as 17 in the opening half, using a 22-7 spree with three-pointers on both ends – from Graham and Ryan Sheehan to carry a 36-21 advantage into the break.

But UNE came out firing in the second stanza, using three consecutive three-pointers followed by a Marcus Winn jumper to cut the Bison's lead to four within the opening three minutes.

Charles Fenner III's four points of the game came at clutch times, hitting a pair of free throws just over five minutes in to bring the Nor'easters within two, and converting a Brian Jones steal into a fastbreak layup to again cut the deficit to two with 8:20 to play, 53-51.

Nichols responded both times with a three-pointer, and used key Salis free-throws to edge back ahead by nine, 62-53, with 4:30 left in the game.

The Nor'easters kept attempting the three, getting a pair from Jarryd Rossignol and another from Marcus Winn late, but Nichols sank four of five shots from the line down the stretch to hold on for the win.

UNE outrebounded Nichols at a 42-38 margin, and parlayed 12 Bison turnovers (only one in the first half) into 23 points. Nichols, meanwhile found 22 points off of the Nor'easters 19 turnovers.

Nichols travels to Roger Williams Tuesday for an 8 p.m. game. UNE travels to Eastern Nazarene the same night for an 8 p.m. contest.

Box Score