DUDLEY, Mass. (1/14/2026) – A slow start to the second half haunted the Nichols College men's basketball team on Wednesday night, as the Bison fell to visiting Western New England University, 79-65 in conference play inside the Nichols Athletic Center.
The setback moves the Bison to 9-7 (4-3 CNE) overall, while the Golden Bears jump to 10-4 (4-2 CNE).
Senior
Javen Flowers-Smith led the offensive effort with 21 points scored on 9-of-18 (50.0%) shooting, as well as four rebounds, three assists and a steal. Junior
Ethan Minarik and sophomore
Noah Rudman each tallied 10 points apiece, with Rudman adding in a team-high seven rebounds and three steals, all of which were career-high marks for the second-year forward. Altogether, the Bison finished 25-of-63 (39.7%) from the field, scoring 24 bench points and 16 points off opponent turnovers.
Nichols opened the game with a 6-2 run with inside makes from
Olivier St. Louis, Flowers-Smith and Minarik, only for the Golden Bears to later tie the score three times up to a 16-all stalemate just past the midway point. Then, with the score tied at 18-18 shortly thereafter, the Golden Bears jumped in front for the first time on a layup at 7:16 of the half, but Flowers-Smith quickly countered with a trifecta less than a minute later off a quick pass from St. Louis, pushing Nichols back in front, 24-22. The remaining time in the half would feature two more ties and three lead changes, with WNE holding the narrow edge at the break, 34-32.
The Golden Bears stunned the Bison with a 22-3 run to open the second half, which included a pair of early makes from behind the arc to quickly put the hosts in a 21-point pit. In an effort to stop the bleeding,
Dominic Mello knocked down a three at 13:13 to spearhead a 7-0 Bison run, but to no avail as the Golden Bears returned the favor with seven of the next nine to maintain a 19-point edge midway through. Despite the help of multiple trips to the free throw line, and a highlight dunk from Rudman, the Bison would struggle the rest of the way to close the gap, with WNE emerging victorious, 79-65.
The Bison will next host the University of Hartford (9-6, 3-3 CNE) on Saturday, January 17
th beginning at 3:00 PM.
