BANGOR, Maine – Junior Graham Safford led five Bobcats in double figures with 17 points as Bates College men's basketball beat previously undefeated Husson University, 79-58, on Tuesday night at Newman Gymnasium.

The Eagles (13-1) entered the game as one of five unbeaten teams in Division III men's basketball, but the Bobcats (9-6) outscored the hosts 40-18 over the final 13:05 to pull away.

Safford (Hampden, Maine) added eight rebounds and seven assists to his point total while senior Luke Matarazzo (Shelton, Conn.) recorded 14 points and five assists.

Sophomore Mike Boornazian (Portland, Conn.) and junior Adam Philpott (Gloucester, Mass.) netted 13 and 11 points respectively with each player converting on 3-of-4 shots from behind the arc. First-year center Malcolm Delpeche (Wilmington, Del.) contributed 12 points, six rebounds, and five blocked shots.

For Husson, senior Brooks Spaulding (Fairfield, Maine) paced the team with 14 points, sophomore Trevon Butler (Waterbury, Conn.) scored 11, and senior Phil Leighton (Naples, Maine) had 10.

Bates held the Eagles to 58 points, 37.3 percent shooting from the field, and 27.8 percent shooting from 3-point distance, well below the team's averages coming into the game – 87.4, 49.1, and 43.4 respectively. The Bobcats shot 63 percent from the floor and 53.9 percent from distance.

After allowing Husson to take its first lead of the second half at 40-39 with just over 13 minutes remaining, Philpott hit a 3-pointer to spark a 14-4 run which gave Bates a 53-44 advantage with 8:31 left. Boornazian capped the streak with a 3-pointer of his own forcing the Eagles to call a timeout.

Husson pulled back within 58-51 at the 5:33 mark, but Bates countered with a 12-1 spurt to gain a 70-52 edge with 2:45 to go. First-year Quin Leary (Auburn, Maine) concluded the game's scoring for Bates with a 3-pointer from the corner as the Bobcats ended the contest on a 21-7 run.

In the first half, neither team could gain a lead larger than five points over the contest's initial 17 minutes until the Bobcats took a 33-25 lead with 2:19 to play in the opening period. The visitors gained that edge behind an 8-0 spurt with Safford and Boornazian each connecting on 3-pointers during the run. The Eagles responded with the half's final four points to cut their deficit to 33-29 heading into the break.

Next, Bates returns to NESCAC play at Tufts on Saturday at 4 p.m. while Husson resumes NAC play at Johnston State on Friday at 5:30 p.m.