Senior Michael Venafra scored a game-high 18 points to lead the attack and was named the Tournament’s Most Valuable Player following the game. Venafra averaged 22 points in the two wins and scored his 1,000th career point in the first game on Tuesday.
Joining Venafra on the All-Tournament Team were senior David Spadt and junior Drew Christman. Spadt averaged 12.5 points in the two games and Christman 11 points including his first career double-double with 16 points and 10 rebounds in the championship game win.
DSU (7-2 overall) held a four-point lead at halftime on the strength of a 9-3 run over the final 2:04 of the first half. Venafra canned two three-pointers and Christman one during the spurt as the Bulldogs led 39-35.
In the second half, DeSales led 49-44 with 14:33 left before a 10-2 run gave the Bulldogs a commanding 13-point lead at 59-46 with 9:57 remaining. Freshman Jamie McCloskey and Spadt started the run with consecutive lay-ups before Christman canned a three-pointer and followed that with a lay-up to give DeSales the 13-point lead and the eventual win.
Venafra was 5-for-8 from the field and made three treys. Spadt totaled 13 points on a perfect 5-for-5 shooting night and Christman recorded his first career double-double in 26 minutes off the bench. Senior Kyle Koch totaled 14 points and six rebounds and the point guard duo of senior Kevin Welsh and freshman Eddie Ohlson combined for 13 points, eight assists and five steals.
The Bulldogs shot 55.6 percent for the game and converted 70.0 percent (10-of-16) of its long range attempts. WPI (9-1 overall) was led by Ryan Cain with 18 points and Mike Prestileo with 15 points.