Umaine Men Knock off Hartford

ORONO, Maine--The University of Maine men’s basketball team defeated Hartford by the score of 68-63 on Wednesday evening at the Alfond Arena in Orono, Maine. With the win, Maine improves to 9-16 overall and 4-8 in America East while Hartford falls to 6-20 and 2-10 in conference play. Maine was led by its America East Player-of-the-Game Sean McNally (Gardiner, Maine) who had 14 points and eight rebounds.

In the first half, the teams traded baskets for the first 10 minutes until the Hawks were able to take a 21-15 lead with just under seven minutes left. Maine proceeded to go on a 9-to-3 run capped by a Mark Socoby (Houlton, Maine) three-pointer to tie the game at 24 with just under six minutes to go in the half. Following a Hawks run that gave them a 32-27 lead, Malachi Peay (Brooklyn, N.Y.) made a layup and Socoby made another three-pointer after a Hartford layup to cut the Hartford lead to 34-32 at halftime. The Black Bears were led in the first half by Socoby who had 12 points and three rebounds and McNally who had six points to go with five rebounds.

Hartford shot 46 percent from the field in the first half while Maine shot 39 percent. Hartford out-rebounded Maine by a 17-15 margin. In a back and forth second half, The Black Bears found themselves down 56-50 with under six minutes left in regulation. However, Andrew Rogers (Philadelphia, Pa.) made a layup to cut the lead to four, and followed that up with a steal. Troy Barnies (Auburn, Maine) was able to make a layup on the Black Bear possession, and the Hawks tried a three-pointer that was blocked by Maine’s Gerald McLemore (San Diego, Calif.). Peay made a nice layup following McLemore’s block, and following a Hartford bucket McNally made two free throws to tie the game at 58. The Hawks missed a three-pointer, and Junior Bernal (Manhattan, N.Y.) found McNally for a layup that would give the Black Bears a lead they would not relinquish. Maine would go 6-for-6 from the free throw line the rest of the way to clinch the victory.

Peay finished with 12 points and four rebounds while Socoby had 15 points. McLemore scored 10 points to go with five rebounds and Bernal dished out six assists. Hartford was led by its America East Player-of-the-Game Michael Turner who had a game-high 26 points and eight rebounds. Maine went 23-for-52 from the field while Hartford went 25-for-52. The Black Bears were an impressive 15-of-17 from the free throw line while Hartford went 7-for-10. Both teams finished with 30 rebounds. Maine continues play on Thursday, Feb. 19 at New Hampshire. Tip-off is set for 7 p.m.

Courtesy UMaine Communications