BABSON PARK, Mass. -- Junior captain Stephon Baxter scored 26 points to lead the Bobcats but the Bates men's basketball team fell 82-71 on the road Saturday afternoon at Babson.

Baxter (Worcester, Mass.) is averaging 27.3 points per game through three contests for Bates (1-2) through the first three games. But no one else finished in double figures for the Bobcats on Saturday. Sophomore Stephen Ward (Boston, Mass.) turned in a strong performance with eight points and a team-high 10 rebounds.

Meanwhile, Babson (4-2) got a career-high 31 points from Spencer Cline. Colin Bradanese recorded his third double-double of the year with 18 points and 10 rebounds to go along with five assists, while Kieran Dorney finished with season highs of 12 points and six boards for the Beavers. John Gorgol added a season-high 10 points and chipped in with five rebounds and three assists

Cline knocked down three early triples and the Beavers forced 11 turnovers over the first eight-plus minutes on the way to opening a 22-4 lead over the Bobcats with 11:46 to go in the first half. Bates answered with a 21-8 spurt to pull within five on a bucket by Baxter at the 3:59 mark, but the Beavers got back-to-back hoops by Cline and Dorney. Matt Corey beat the buzzer with a transition layup to extend the margin back to 36-27 at the break.

Babson grabbed its biggest lead of the second half at 46-33 on a three-pointer by Gorgol from the left corner with 16:15 remaining. Baxter and first-year Taras Fesiienko (Everett, Wash.) combined for nine points to spark an 18-3 burst that gave the Bobcats their first lead of the afternoon at 51-49 with 9:39 to play.

Gorgol answered with a three-pointer and Cline followed with 11 straight points as the Beavers regained a 63-55 advantage with less than six minutes to go. Bates got as close as six on a triple by first-year Drew Sachs (Ann Arbor, Mich.) but Cline answered with his fourth three-pointer of the game on the following possession to make it 73-64 with 2:55 left.

Babson shot 42.2 percent from the floor and outscored the Bobcats 19-8 at the free throw line in addition to finishing with a 42-38 edge on the glass.

Bates shot 43.3 percent and outscored the Beavers 38-16 in the paint but were just 5-of-20 from three-point range.

The Bobcats host the University of Southern Maine in their home opener Tuesday at 7:30pm.