ESPN Men's Basketball

FAIRFAX, Va. -- Stephen Albrecht had 22 points and Sean McGonagill added 18 to lead Brown past Monmouth (N.J.) 79-71 in the consolation round of the NIT Season Tip-Off on Tuesday.

The Bears (3-3) took the lead on Matt Sullivan's 3-pointer with 6:55 to play in the first half -- the first of three consecutive 3s by Brown. The Bears increased their advantage to 59-49 with 14:13 to play on a 3-pointer by McGonagill.

Brown shot 61.2 percent (30 of 49) for the game -- 67.9 percent (19 of 28) in the first half.

Monmouth (0-5), which lost its first four games by an average of 34.8 points, was much more competitive against the Bears. Andrew Nicholas, a freshman who had scored 17 points in his first four college games, scored 24 -- 20 in the first half. He missed four of his six shots in the second half.

.