WESTON, Mass. – February 19, 2024 – The 10th seed Dean College men's basketball team fell to seventh seed Regis, 88-61, in Monday's Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) Tournament play-in round.

The Bulldogs, who made their second appearance in three years in the GNAC Tournament, end their season at 9-17 overall and 5-9 in the conference. Regis, who avenged a 91-90 overtime loss during the regular season at Dean, improves to 14-12 and will travel to second seed Albertus Magnus for a GNAC quarterfinal contest tomorrow night.  

Senior AJ Weston (Kansas City, Mo.) wrapped up his Dean career with 22 points and nine rebounds. Sophomore Moussa Berete (Richmond, Va.) scored 12 points, while senior Charles Walker (Princeton, N.C.) was the third Bulldog in double figures with 10 points.

Zakaria Latifi led the Regis scorers with 22 points on 8-of-9 shooting and 5-of-6 from beyond the arc. Justin Evelyn finished with 14 points and six assists. Russell Rau recorded a double-double of 13 points and 13 boards.

The Pride opened the game with a 7-0 spurt before a Weston three-pointer got Dean on the board. Regis slowly built a lead for the remainder of the half, which eventually ballooned to 24 points at 32-8, en route to a 43-21 advantage at the break.

The home team shot 53.6% (15-28) from the floor and 53.8% (7-13) from beyond the arc, while holding Dean to eight made field goals. The Pride also controlled the glass with a 31-8 margin in rebounding. Latifi, Cameron Wilkins and Evelyn each scored double figures in the first half to combine for 31 points. Berete led Dean with seven points.

Regis scored the first nine points of the second half and never looked back. The Pride outscored the Bulldogs 45-40 in the second frame.

The home team finished with a 54-28 advantage in rebounds and shot 49.2% from the floor. The Pride ended the game with 12 three-pointers on 44.4% shooting, while Dean made six treys at 31.6%.