SPRINGFIELD, Mass. – A 14-2 run midway through the second half sent the Clark University men's basketball team to a 74-64 victory over Mount Saint Mary College in the championship game of the Golden Bears Classic at Western New England College. The Cougars improved to 3-1 overall while the Blue Knights dropped to 1-3.

A jumper by junior Matt Weinberger (Washingtonville, N.Y.) at the 12:09 mark gave the Blue Knights a one point lead (47-46), but Clark responded with back-to-back three pointers to take a five point advantage. Sophomore Kevin Milella (Floral Park, N.Y.) banked home a layup to make it 52-49, but the Cougars snuck away again and a three-pointer by sophomore Mitch Renshaw (Rutland, Mass.) at the 6:59 mark capped a 14-2 run and made the score 60-49.

Trailing by as many as eight in the first half, the Blue Knights rallied right before the half time buzzer and carried a three-point advantage (37-34) into the locker room. Trailing by six with two and a half minutes to play in the half, the Mount closed the half on an 11-2 run. Sophomore Carlos Valdez (Slate Hill, N.Y.) completed a three-point play with a dunk and a free throw at the 1:05 mark to give the Blue Knights the lead and a three-pointer by freshman Lenny Ragaglia (Staten Island, N.Y.) closed out the half.

Valdez finished with a team-high 17 points and also pulled down 7 rebounds. Junior Tim Morris (Greenwich, N.Y.) was the only other Blue Knight in double figures with 11. Weinberger pitched in 8 points and 6 assists.

Senior Mark Alexander (Providence, R.I.) paced the Cougars with 21 points. Sophomore Brian Vayda (Sturbridge, Mass.) totaled 12 points and 9 rebounds on his way to being named the tournament's most valuable player.

Valdez and Weinberger were named to the all-tournament team for the Blue Knights.

Up next for Mount Saint Mary is a trip to Rensselaer. The Blue Knights will take on RPI at 8:00 p.m. on Tuesday, November 24.