Box Score DARTMOUTH, Mass. -- Sophomore Dante Rivera (Methuen, Mass.) scored 23 points to lead four players in double figures, as Plymouth State used a second half surge to post a 75-63 Little East Conference men's basketball victory over UMass Dartmouth Saturday afternoon at the Tripp Athletic Center.
The visiting Panthers (8-7, 3-4 LEC) blistered the nets at a 56 percent clip (15-27) to open up a 38-35 advantage at the break, but the host Corsairs (10-7, 5-3 LEC) used a 14-5 opening run after intermission to grab a 49-43 lead on sophomore Marcus Azor's (Brockton, Mass.) conventional three-point play with 14:49 remaining. Plymouth State responded with nine unanswered points over the next four minutes to regain a 51-49 edge, and after the score was knotted for the final time at 53, Rivera's three-pointer with 9:31 to play gave the visitors the lead for good. UMass Dartmouth crept back to within one two possessions later, but a three-pointer by senior Jaylen LeRoy (Manchester, N.H.), coupled with free throws from Rivera and freshman Cody Graham (Rye, N.H.) down the stretch, iced the Panthers' triumph.
Rivera connected for five treys on the day for Plymouth State, which received 19 points from LeRoy along with 17 points and three assists from Graham. Junior Devin Cooper (Newfield, N.Y.) added a double-double effort of 10 points and 10 rebounds for the Panthers, who shot 47 percent (27-58) from the floor and canned 10 three-pointers overall. The visitors converted 17 turnovers into 20 points despite being outrebounded by 39-29 margin.
Azor notched 16 points, six rebounds, four assists and pair of steals in the setback for the Corsairs, who received 11 points and five boards from sophomore Matt Valles (Fairhaven, Mass.) along with 10 points from sophomore Adam Seablom (Lakeville, Mass.). Sophomore Dhalyn Sanders-Dyer (Worcester, Mass.) and junior Jake Ashworth (Fairhaven, Mass.) combined for 16 points for UMass Dartmouth, which shot 41 percent (24-58) from the floor and scored over half their points (38) in the paint.
UMass Dartmouth will be idle until next Saturday, January 25th when the Corsairs travel to Castleton, Vt. to take on Castleton in a Little East Conference clash that tips-off at 4:00 pm, while Plymouth State heads into Boston on Wednesday evening for a Little East matchup with UMass Boston that tips-off at 7:30 pm.
