DUDLEY, Mass. (11/15/2025) – The Nichols College men's basketball team held off visiting Bridgwater State University for their first win of the season on Saturday afternoon, defeating the Bears 102-99 in overtime inside the Nichols Athletic Center.

Nichols improves to 1-2 overall following the win, while Bridgewater State drops to 0-2.

The Bison had two players finish the day with double-double performances; Olivier St. Louis, who paired a career-high 25 points with 16 rebounds, and Luke Chapman who scored 12 points with a matching 12 rebounds. Graduate student Dominic Mello was the top scorer for the Bison with 28 points in the win, also a career-high, along with five boards, five assists and two steals. Senior Javen Flowers-Smith also pitched in with 21 points, while junior Ethan Minarik followed with 10 points. Combined, the Bison finished the day with 32-of-75 (42.7%) success from the field, 10-of-27 (37.0%) from three, and 28-of-38 (73.7%) from the free throw line.

Both teams totaled 48 rebounds in the game.

The Bison started strong in the opening half with a 18-9 lead, nailing three shots from three-point range through the first eight minutes of action. Over the course of the mid-way point of the half, Bridgewater State slowly chipped away at Nichols' lead, moving to as close as one point with 3:26 to play with the help of a 7-1 run. Nichols countered with four quick points on a pair of St. Louis free throws and a Chapman triple, sparking a 10-4 Bison run which gave the hosts a 45-37 lead at the break.

Another three from Chapman furthered Nichols' lead to nine early in the second half, but the Bears would claw back again to tie the score at 63-63 with 11:00 to play in regulation. It didn't stop there for Bridgewater State, as they continued to fire off another seven unanswered points, rewarding them with their first lead of the afternoon, 70-63  with 9:30 left. Despite the momentum shift, Nichols refused to back down and answered with a 11-2 run, with a Minarik layup restoring the host lead at 74-72. With only 5:30 remaining, the rest of the action would feature five lead changes and two ties, with regulation ending at an 89-89 deadlock.

In the extra period, the Bison went on to outscore the Bears by a narrow 13-10 margin, with Flowers-Smith playing the hero with three points on an and-one layup in the final seconds.

Men's basketball opens a four-game road trip with their conference opener at Endicott College (3-0) on Wednesday, November 19^th. Tip-off is set for 7:30 PM at MacDonald Gymnasium.