WALTHAM, Mass. – Superior shooting in the second half enabled Dominican College to edge Bentley University, 63-58, in the second round of the season-opening Bentley Tip-Off Classic Saturday night at the Dana Center.

Senior Leon Porter (Laurel, Md.), an All-Central Atlantic performer a year ago, led the way for the 1-1 Chargers, with 24 points, including 14 in a second half that started with the two teams even at 29. The five-foot-five guard hit seven of 11 from the field, including several short-range floaters, and had as many three pointers as the Falcons had in total, three.

Junior guard Jasper Grassa (Lynn/Lynn Classical HS) topped the scoring list for the Falcons, with 15 of his 18 points coming after intermission.

Following a first half that saw four ties and the same number of lead changes, Dominican used three-balls from junior guard Khaleev Ginyard (Brentwood, N.Y.) and Porter in the first 90 seconds of the second to go up five, 36-31.

That 7-2 spurt, which put the visitors in front for good, grew into a larger 23-13 run, resulting in a 10-point Dominican lead with seven-and-a-half minutes left, 53-42.

Led by freshman forward Tyler McFarland (Rockport, Maine/Camden Hills HS), Bentley battled back to draw within two, 54-52, with 2:50 left. McFarland had six during that 10-2 spurt, including a long two-pointer to make it a two-point game.

Porter countered with an eight-foot runner, but Bentley again cut it to two with an off-balance jumper in the paint with 1:28 to play. After the two teams traded turnovers, a driving lay-up by junior Johnathan Brown (Central Islip, N.Y.) with 47 seconds stretched it to four, 58-54.

Five of six free throws in the final 30 seconds, including four by Porter, helped Dominican to lock up the win.

After McFarland scored the game's first four points, Dominican used a 13-3 run to claim an early 13-7 lead. Nine straight by a pair of Falcon sophomores, JP Koury (Red Bank, N.J./ CBA) and Andrew Shaw (Saco, Maine/Thornton Academy), put Bentley back up by four, 23-19, before the Chargers countered with a Porter-fueled 8-2 burst.

Both teams shot 40 percent in the first half but the second 20 minutes was a different story. Dominican made 48 percent of its attempts, including four of nine from three, while Bentley connected at a 38.5 percent clip. That included a one-for-ten performance from outside the arc.

Dominican outshot the Falcons 44-39 percent overall and 50-15 percent from three. The Chargers hit half of their 12 from beyond the arc, and the Falcons were only three of 20. Bentley was outrebounded by five, 34-29, but had a 16-9 edge in points off turnovers.

Grassa, who also had four rebounds and three assists, was followed on the scoring list by McFarland and Shaw. McFarland filled the stat sheet with 13 points, four steals, three rebounds and two blocks, and Shaw contributed 12 points and six boards. The only other Falcon with more than two points was Koury, with nine off the bench.

Dominican, in addition to the big game from the diminutive Porter, also received a solid effort from 2012 CACC co-Player of the Year Cory Quimby (Otisville, N.Y.). The six-foot-six center finished with 11 points, 12 rebounds and five assists.

Bentley, 1-1, opens its Northeast-10 schedule at UMass-Lowell Wednesday night.

In the earlier game, Mike Clifford and Kevin Regan combined for 36 points as Merrimack College improved to 2-0 with a 75-62 win over Caldwell College. Bentley will see Merrimack in their next Dana Center appearance, Nov. 20