The New York Times-20080129-Winning Despite Obscurity

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Winning Despite Obscurity

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From a makeshift turntable in the corner of a gymnasium last week, a D.J. blasted staticky music during timeouts of a basketball game. The stands at the Dana Center, on the campus of Bentley College, were less than half full. Many people in the building, which also houses a student fitness center, did not bother to step away from their treadmills or weight benches to watch the game.

What they could have seen was perhaps the most successful sports team in the Boston area.

In the shadows of the mighty Patriots, Celtics and Red Sox are the Bentley Falcons, a Division II men's basketball team that has won 45 consecutive regular-season games and has lost once since March 2006. Yet only about 1,000 fans were on hand last Tuesday, when Bentley defeated Pace, 71-66. The Northeast-10 Conference charged $6.99 for a Webcast of the game; 16 people paid to watch.

With another victory Thursday, 76-60 at Southern New Hampshire, Bentley pulled even with the Patriots at 18-0 this season.

We've been diligent in our recruiting and have stumbled into some special players, said Bentley's coach of 17 years, Jay Lawson, trying to explain the Falcons' streak. But I don't know what else to tell you. I'm still trying to figure it out myself.

Bentley is located in this middle-class suburb 10 miles west of Boston -- and about 30 miles north of the Patriots' home in Foxborough. Enrollment is about 5,000, and the undergraduate business program was ranked in the top 50 by U.S. News & World Report in America's Best Colleges 2008.

But the men's basketball team, which has won 50 of its last 51 games, is No. 1, in the Division II national rankings, that is.

Sometimes we ask ourselves, Are we really No. 1? said Yusuf Abdul-Ali, a senior point guard. But we don't talk about the streak much.

Despite their dominance, the Falcons remain anonymous mainly because they compete away from the limelight of Division I, the N.C.A.A.'s top tier. Our legitimate players are guys hidden from the big-school recruiters, Lawson said. That's what D-II is: shorter in the frontcourt, with more mobility and guard skill at all positions.

Nate Fritsch, a fifth-year senior, said that several Division I programs scouted him before he committed to Bentley. Although he comes off the bench, Fritsch is averaging 13.8 points a game, second on the team. He is among four Falcons averaging in double figures.

Any one of the four of us can take over a game, Fritsch said. If one of us isn't shooting well, we just give it to another guy because he's probably having a hot hand.

It is not always that easy, of course. In a stretch of three games this month, Bentley won by 3, 1 and 4 points, with the 4-point victory coming in overtime. In the 1-point victory, on Jan. 8, players from Franklin Pierce missed two shots from under the basket in the final four seconds, allowing the Falcons to escape with a 63-62 victory.

On a Division I campus, such narrow victories and a No. 1 ranking would create visions of a Final Four run and national glory. There is no such buzz here.

Since they're not D-I, it's not exciting, said Neal Altman, a Bentley sophomore, who added that he had not attended a game this season. It's not just because they're in a town with all these good pro teams.

Lawson said a move to Division I was unlikely.

People are always asking us why we don't move to D-I, he said. We're not only in a pro city, but a D-I city. Look at B.C., B.U., Harvard, Holy Cross, UMass. But our athletic department has had positive experiences with these teams as opposed to what division we're in.

Despite the lack of attention, the scholarship athletes on Bentley's basketball team are rewarded. Full scholarships cover the cost of room and board, about $42,000 a year.

It costs more for them to go here than it did for J. J. Redick to go to Duke, Lawson said, comparing the tuition at the two colleges. (Duke now costs slightly more.)

Bentley's men's basketball program has enjoyed Duke-like consistency under Lawson. The Falcons have had winning records in 16 of his 17 seasons, including the last 13 in a row. Last season they went 32-1 and were undefeated in the Northeast-10. Their only blemish was a loss to Winona State, the defending champion, in the N.C.A.A. Division II quarterfinals.

With nine regular-season games remaining, Bentley is still perfect this season.

In the end, it's not about the win streak, Lawson said. It's the same with the Pats, who won't be happy if they lose the championship. If we lose -- when we lose -- it'll remind them how much we hate to lose. And that, in turn, may take us to a higher level than we ever got to last year.

[Illustration]PHOTO: The Bentley College men's basketball team has won 45 consecutive regular-season games, and 50 of its last 51 over all.(PHOTOGRAPH BY RICHARD ORR SPORTS/BENTLEY COLLEGE)