Box Score DANBURY, Conn. – The University of Massachusetts Dartmouth men's basketball team hit 61 percent of its attempts from the floor, finishing with three players with at least 20 points, to hand Western Connecticut State University a 101-87 Little East Conference loss Saturday afternoon at Feldman Arena.
Junior Wale Abraham (Lynn, Mass.) produced a monster double-double, consisting of 24 points and 19 rebounds, to lead the Corsairs (11-8, 7-2 LEC). Senior captains Jake Laga (Northampton, Mass.) and John Genkos (Worcester, Mass.) combined to score 42 points, while senior Josh Castillo (Lynn, Mass.) came off the bench to net 16 points. Genkos and sophomore Jon Robinson (Chatham, Mass.) each dished out seven helpers.
Junior Phil Starks (Hartford, Conn.) paced the Colonials offensive attack with 21 points. Junior Luis Bridtter (Stamford, Conn.) contributed 17 points and eight rebounds, while junior Jeremiah Washington (Bridgeport, Conn.) finished with 13 points.
Castillo converted a pair of free throws to give UMass Dartmouth its first advantage (10-9) of the contest. Western responded with a bucket of its next possession, but Abraham connected on a lay-up to give the Corsairs a lead they would never relinquish over the final 35 minutes of regulation.
A three-pointer by Genkos at the 8:07 mark gave the visitors a 13-point lead, 33-20, but Western fought back to draw within two points, 40-38, with two and a half minutes remaining before halftime. However, Laga drained a triple at the buzzer to send UMass Dartmouth into the intermission leading 49-41.
The Corsairs wasted little time pushing their advantage to double digits, scoring in the first minute of play to take a 51-41 lead. The Colonials closed the gap to eight points (51-43), but the visitors responded with a Abraham jumper and Genkos trifecta to push the lead back to 13 points.
UMass Dartmouth would expand its lead to 20 points on three different occasions in the game's final seven minutes, the last a 98-78 lead with 1:38 remaining, but Western closed with a small flurry to make the margin 14 when the final buzzer sounded.
The visitors 61.3 percent (38-for-62) from the field, 57.1 percent (8-for-14) from long range and 65.4 percent (17-for-26) from the foul line. The Corsairs also held a 40-34 advantage in rebounds and a 23-15 edge in assists.
UMass Dartmouth will return to action at 7 p.m. on Tuesday, Feb. 3, when the Corsairs host Tufts University.
