WALTHAM - The men's basketball team advanced to the second round of the NCAA Division II men's basketball tournament Saturday afternoon, as they upset second-seeded American International College 100-96 in the tournament's opening round. 

The CACC Tournament champion Deacons fell behind in the early going, the Yellow Jackets jumping out to a 26-17 advantage midway through the opening half.  But Bloomfield would weather the early storm from their favored counterparts, orchestrating a 12-2 run to take a 39-38 lead with 6:38 to play, eventually taking a slim 45-42 lead into the intermission.

It would be a lead the underdog Deacons would not relinquish, as the CACC's top offensive club shot 54% from the field and 20-25 from the free-throw line in the second half to pull away and secure a bid in the regional's semifinal round. 

After the Yellow Jackets cut the deficit to a single point with 16 minutes remaining, Bloomfield would slowly push the advantage to nine points with just over eight minutes remaining.  The lead would balloon to as many as 14 with four minutes remaining, and despite a hard AIC charge in the game's final minutes, the Deacons would hold on to preserve the four-point victory and advance to Sunday's semifinal action.

"I thought we played extremely well today, and we were able to pick up a huge victory for our program and for Bloomfield College,"  Bloomfield head coach Gerald Holmes said.  "We'll have another tough test tomorrow night, but if we come to play like we did today, we can play with anyone in this tournament."

Junior forward Matt Wafula was the top offensive performer for the Deacons, netting 20 points and pulling down eight rebounds in the win.  Wafula was one of six Bloomfield players in double-figures, with freshman forward Kevin Udo providing the rest of the frontcourt power with 17 points and 10 rebounds in the finest performance of his young career.  Gage Daye tallied 17 points of his own to go with six assists, while Ahmad Harris and Ryan Rodrigues notched 14 points apiece.  Art Ellis came off the bench to spell Harris, notching 11 points in reserve. 

The Deacons return to action Sunday, March 13 when they take on third-seeded Stonehill College in the East Regional semifinals.  Tip-off for the contest is set for 6:00 PM.