ROCHESTER, New York -- On Friday afternoon, the Heidelberg University men's basketball team tipped off their 2019-20 regular season at the Chuck Resler Invitational in Rochester, New York.

In the opening match of the tournament, head coach Andy Bucheit's side rose to the occasion with a dominant second-half display and knocked off Mt. St. Mary College by a final score of 72-61. 

For the Student Princes (1-0), returning All-OAC point guard Dylan Woods led the way with 27 points -- a game-high -- on 8-of-11 from the floor and a perfect 4-for-4 from the free throw line. Next in scoring was Emmanuel Perdue who contributed 17 points in his first collegiate start. 

Prince Benson and Phariz Watkins each chipped in with nine points as well. Benson was the game's leading rebounder (11) and blocker (4). Tamal Watkins  dished out a game-high five assists. 

Heidelberg found themselves trailing by four at the break to the Knights (0-2). In the first half, the Berg turned the ball over 12 times which resulted in 14 points for the Knights, helping push them to the 29-25 halftime lead. 

However, in the second period, Heidelberg picked up the pressure. Within four and a half minutes of play, the Berg erased the lead after three consecutive three-pointers by Dylan Woods tied the game at 35.

After tying the game on Woods' sharp shooting, a Phariz Watkins bucket just a minute later gave the Student Princes back the lead -- one they would not concede for the remainder of the game. Watkins was fouled on the jumper and tacked on the and-one making the score 42-40. 

The free throw would set off a spree of trips to the line for the Berg. After the and-one from Watkins, the Berg would make their way to the charity stripe for 23 free throw attempts over the final 14 minutes. Of those attempts, the Berg was successful on 18 of those tries. 

All-in-all the Berg commanded the second half, outscoring Mt. St. Mary by 15 points to emerge with the 11-point win. 

For the Knights, Kendall Francis scored 25 points, had eight rebounds, and accounted for five assists. Paul Sienke was the only other Knight to reach double-figures in scoring with 14. 

The Student Princes will face the winner of the second game of the Chuck Resler Invitational between Rochester and Misericordia. Tipoff for the tournament championship game will be at 8 p.m. tomorrow evening.