BOSTON – Highlighted by a strong defensive effort and sophomore Kyrone Alexander's near double-double effort, the Boston University men's basketball team rolled to a 78-50 victory over Dartmouth Saturday afternoon at Case Gym.

By shooting 54.5 percent from the field and limiting the Big Green (2-2) to 29.3 FG%, the Terriers (1-3) collected their first win of the season. BU also earned its fourth straight home win in the series by posting a 48-29 advantage in rebounds with the help of a season-high five blocks and outscoring Dartmouth in the paint, 42-16.

Alexander drained four of BU's six 3-pointers en route to his second ever 20+ point performance with 21 total alongside a career-high nine rebounds. Freshman Ben Defty was the other Terrier in double figures at a season-high 10 points, while freshman Azmar Abdullah and graduate student Miles Brewster both tallied nine points and six rebounds apiece. 

Dartmouth had three men score in double figures with Ryan Cornish leading the way at 13 points. Jackson Munro and Connor Amundsen combined for 21 points and seven rebounds, as the Big Green came up empty in second-chance scoring opportunities despite hauling in eight offensive rebounds.

HOW IT HAPPENED

• The teams tied twice and battled through five lead changes early in the first half after Munro started the game with back-to-back layups.
• Cade Haskins kept Dartmouth's lead at four points (14-10) with a 3-pointer at 12:14, but Defty responded with two consecutive buckets.
• Cornish gave the Big Green their final lead of the game, 17-16, on a layup at 9:40 before sophomore Matai Baptiste put the Terriers ahead for good by scoring the putback on a missed BU jumper with 9:18 remaining.
• Baptiste's bucket sparked a 19-5 run that featured Alexander hitting a long jumper and then a 3-pointer to move ahead, 32-19, at 2:49.
• On BU's final possession of the half, Brewster drove to the hoop to enter the locker room leading, 34-21.
• Facing a 36-21 deficit to start the second half following junior Nico Nobili's layup set up by Chimezie, the Big Green hit a 3-pointer on three consecutive possessions to pull within eight, 38-30, at 17:56.
• Dartmouth would exchange layups to keep the deficit at eight points, 40-32, and prompt a BU timeout with 16:53 remaining.
• The Terriers then went on a 25-7 run over the next eight minutes capped by Defty setting up Abdullah for a 3-pointer at 8:32.
• BU prevented Dartmouth from mounting a rally, as the Terriers scored 13 of the game's final 21 points for the victory.

GAME NOTES

• With BU's most points scored by a Terrier this November at 21 total, Alexander finished two shy of his personal best set last February at home against Loyola Maryland.
• Alexander snapped Chimezie's three-game season-opening streak of leading BU in rebounds.
• Defty became the sixth Terrier to score in double figures this season.
• BU shot 61.5 percent in the second half with a 4-of-9 3FG performance following a 2-of-13 start from behind the arc.
• The Terriers outscored Dartmouth off turnovers, 11-9, and in bench production, 29-12.
• BU cut Dartmouth's series lead to 23-11 with its fourth straight home victory.

UP NEXT

• The Terriers will remain home and host defending NEC champion Wagner on Tuesday (Nov. 19) at 7 p.m.
• Last season, BU claimed a 73-59 road victory in the program's first matchup since the 1981-82 season.
• BU is 0-3 all-time at home, having dropped the three contests by a combined eight points, including a 74-70 decision during the 1980-81 campaign.