BOSTON, Mass. - Sophomore forward Jim Bayne (Bristol, CT) had 15 points and nine rebounds and senior center Mike Cutler (Amherst, MA) added a season high 14 points and six rebounds coming off the bench as Western New England College ran its winning streak to four games with a 72-57 victory over host Suffolk University.

Playing for the first time since December 11, the Golden Bears (6-3) remain undefeated in the Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) with a 3-0 mark.

Sophomore center Malik Champlain (Norwich, CT) had a solid outing with eight points and seven rebounds. Freshman guard Asif Abdul-Wadud (Springfield, MA) contributed seven points off the bench after making 3-of-4 shots from the field and his only free throw.

WNEC held Suffolk to only 37.7% shooting from the field. The Golden Bears came into the game fourth in the nation among Division III schools in field-goal percentage defense (35.3).

GOLDEN BEARS HEAD INTO SEMESTER BREAK WITH 5-3 RECORD

SPRINGFIELD, Mass. â€" With a 5-3 record at the semester break, first-year Western New England College men's basketball coach Mike Theulen likes what he sees. The Golden Bears ended the 2004 portion of their schedule with a three-game winning streak and are 2-0 in the Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC).

"I'm pleased with the way we started the season," said Theulen, the school's athletics director. "However, we still have to be more efficient on the offensive end."

Western New England College is first in the conference in scoring defense (61.1) and field-goal percentage defense (.353), and second in scoring margin (+5.3), but only ninth (out of 10 teams) in scoring offense (66.4).

Sophomore forward Jim Bayne (Bristol, CT) is seventh in the GNAC in scoring (15.2) and second in rebounding (10.1). He also has a conference high 34 offensive rebounds and is sixth in blocked shots (9).

Junior guard Jon Godbout (Bristol, CT) is eighth in scoring (15.0), fourth in three-point field-goal percentage (.484), seventh in field-goal percentage (.500), eighth in free-throw percentage (.767), and ninth in three-pointers (15).

Senior forward Anthony Charbatji (Attleboro, MA) is ninth in both scoring (14.6) and three-point field-goal percentage (.393), and third in three-pointers (22). Senior guard Jeremy Sternstein (Ithaca, NY) is fifth in assists (3.88), 10th in steals (14), and third in assist/turnover ratio (1.82). Sophomore center Malik Champlain (Norwich, CT) is fifth in rebounding (7.50).

Western New England College returns to action with a GNAC contest starting at 2:00 p.m. Saturday (Jan .8) at Suffolk University.

JUNIOR JON GODBOUT NAMED WESTERN NEW ENGLAND COLLEGE MALE ATHLETE-OF-THE-WEEK

SPRINGFIELD, Mass. â€" Junior Jon Godbout (Bristol, CT) was honored Tuesday (Dec. 14) as the Western New England College Male Athlete-of-the-Week.

Godbout, a guard, averaged 18.3 points in a 3-0 week for the Golden Bears while shooting 51.3 percent from the field (20-39), 46.7 percent from three-point territory (7-15), and 80.0 percent from the foul line (8-10). He had a career high 27 points in a 77-66 win at Elms.

Godbout is second on the team in scoring (15.0 avg.) and first in both field-goal percentage (50.0) and free-throw percentage (76.7). He is an accounting major