DARTMOUTH, Mass. -- Senior
Jake Ashworth (Fairhaven, Mass.) scored 20 points to eclipse the 1,200 career point plateau and grabbed seven rebounds to lead five players in double figures, as UMass Dartmouth notched a 90-72 Little East Conference men's basketball victory over Eastern Connecticut Sunday afternoon at the Tripp Athletic Center.
After overcoming a slow start from the floor in the final seven minutes of action, the host Corsairs (6-2, 6-2 LEC) used a 16-2 outburst over a 5:24 stretch to grab a 13-point advantage (26-13) on Ashworth's three-pointer with 7:33 remaining in the half. The visiting Warriors (4-3, 2-3 LEC) crept back to within three twice in the closing 51 seconds before intermission on a combined five points from senior
Cory Muckle (Westbrook, Conn.), but junior
Dhalyn Sanders-Dyer (Worcester, Mass.) connected on a 70-foot buzzer beater from the left side of the court to give UMass Dartmouth a 37-31 cushion at the break.
Sophomore
Jackson Zancan's (Cumberland, R.I.) conventional three-point play 1:45 into the second half capped a quick 7-0 run that extended the Corsairs' lead to 13 (44-31), and that margin ballooned to 19 points (65-46) on freshman
Isaac Percy's (Pittsfield, Mass.) lay-in with 9:46 remaining. Eastern Connecticut responded with a 16-4 run over the next 2:54 of action to slice its deficit to seven (69-62) on sophomore
Rakesh Tibby's (East Hartford, Conn.) jumper, but Ashworth ignited a decisive closing run for the hosts by scoring 11 points as a part of 13-0 run that extended UMass Dartmouth's lead to 20 (82-62) with 4:32 to play, as that margin grew to as much as 21 in the final minutes of action.
Percy added 14 points in the triumph for the Corsairs, who received a double-double effort of 13 points, 16 rebounds and four blocks from Zancan along with 13 points, seven assists and six boards from junior
Marcus Azor (Brockton, Mass.). Sanders-Dyer finished with 10 points and three assists from UMass Dartmouth, which received six points and six caroms from junior
Adam Seablom (Lakeville, Mass.) along with six points each from junior
Sean Leahy (Hanson, Mass.) and sophomore
Justin Lopes (Wareham, Mass.). The hosts shot 47 percent (34-72) from the field overall and held a 44-37 rebounding edge on the afternoon, as the Corsairs turned 14 Warrior turnovers into 18 points to avenge an 87-85 overtime setback suffered yesterday in Willimantic, Conn.
Sophomore
Quinton Lott (Bridgeport, Conn.) registered a double-double effort of 13 points and 15 rebounds in the setback for Eastern Connecticut, which received 13 points from junior
Tyreice Woods (Hartford, Conn.) and 12 points from Muckle. Freshman
AJ Edwards (New Haven, Conn.) chipped in with 11 points for the visitors, who shot 42 percent (25-59) from the floor and were outscored by a 46-28 margin in the paint.
UMass Dartmouth awaits word of its next scheduled contest, while Eastern Connecticut hosts Keene State in a Little East Conference clash on Wednesday evening in Willimantic, Conn. that tips-off at 7:00 pm.
