DARTMOUTH, Mass. – The University of Massachusetts Dartmouth men's basketball team avenged its only Little East Conference loss, defeating Eastern Connecticut, 71-67, Wednesday night at the Tripp Athletic Center.
In a hard-fought game where neither team led by more than five points, the difference was at the free throw line. The Corsairs (13-2, 5-1 LEC) shot 14-of-18 from the line, while the Warriors (11-7, 6-4 LEC) were limited to 4-of-4 from the charity stripe.
Senior
Marcus Azor led UMass Dartmouth with 20 points, nine rebounds, nine assists, three steals and two blocks. Sophomore
Isaac Percy finished with a career-high 18 points off the bench in his first game since Jan. 5, while senior
Adam Seablom and junior
Jackson Zancan each tallied 13 points.
Three players scored in double figures for East Conn. Junior Jalen Williams finished with 18 points, seven rebounds and five assists, while sophomore Max Lee also had 18 with six assists and five boards.
It was a back-and-forth first half as a pair of 3-pointers by the Warriors maintained a slim lead. Six points from Zancan, shots by Azor and Percy, and a Zancan triple eventually evened the score at 15 with 13:59 on the clock.
A three by Seablom put UMass Dartmouth in the lead for the next six minutes until East Conn knotted the game at 24 at the 7:52 mark. Azor, Seablom and Percy each made baskets to keep it close and retake a one-point lead with 3:22 to go, but the Warriors went back on top, taking a 39-37 advantage to the locker room.
Zancan started the second with a 3-ball from Azor. East Conn immediately answered with a 7-3 run to put the Warriors on top, 46-42, with 16:21 left. The teams traded baskets until the momentum swung when graduate student
Jake Ashworth was fouled on a 3-point attempt and hit all three at the line to make it a 57-55 Corsair lead with 10:33 to go.
UMass Dartmouth never relinquished the lead as Percy sunk consecutive triples en route to scoring 10-straight Corsair points. East Conn had an answer for each Corsair basket, keeping it a 64-62 game with 4:23 on the clock. Azor then tallied six points in the final four minutes and came away with a clutch steal with five seconds remaining to seal the victory.
The Corsairs are back at the Tripp Athletic Center on Friday at 7:30 p.m. against WestConn.
