DARTMOUTH, Mass. – Despite double-digit efforts from three players, the UMass Dartmouth men's basketball team shouldered an 80-74 loss to Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI) in non-conference action on Tuesday night. The Engineers move to 4-0, while the Corsairs slip to 1-2 on the season.
It was a back-and-forth battle to open the first half of play after a bucket from junior center
Cam Dunbury tied the contest at 4-all at 14:58. The Engineers answered as a floating jumper from graduate student guard Nicholas Margetson started a 7-0 run for the visitors to open an 11-4 lead. The Corsairs battled back as a three-pointer from graduate student guard
Isaac Percy pulled UMass Dartmouth to within three (19-16) at 7:11.
WPI regained a 23-16 lead on another layup from Margetson, but a 4-0 run continued to help close the gap as rookie guard
Camden DiChiara and junior center
Ryan Flauto helped pull the score to 23-20 with 3:48 remaining. The squads traded points with the visitors regaining a six-point margin on a trey from sophomore guard Nathan Bledsoe, but the Corsairs answered once more as Flauto drained another shot.
The Engineers saw Bledsoe bury another three, but the Corsairs had the last say before half as Percy sank a pair of free throws for the 31-26 WPI lead at the break.
Second half action opened with a pair of free throws from UMassD junior guard
Josh Lopes, closing the gap to 32-28 in the opening minute, but WPI continued to charge as a layup from junior guard Adam Patterson, combined with a pair of three-pointer from senior guard Tim Reidy saw the Engineers break open the contest with a 47-34 score.
WPI continued to capitalize at the free throw line and in the paint, but the Corsairs answered with 13:20 remaining as Percy drained a layup and sophomore guard
Trent Santos converted a pull up jumper for a 51-41 score at 12:36.
UMass Dartmouth answered with a Dunbury free throw, but back-to-back three-pointers from Reidy and Bledsoe widened the margin to 57-44 at 10:28 forcing the Corsairs to take a timeout. Out of the huddle, the home team countered with a Dunbury jumper and a Santos trey to pull to within 59-51, but the Engineers responded once more as senior guard Aidan Callahan drove in a layup to regain the 10-point (61-51) lead with 8:16 to play.
The visiting Engineers continued to find the bucket, building up a 70-56 advantage until 5:04 when DiChiara dropped in a jumper to close it to 12-points. Lopes then laid down six straight points for the Corsairs and a DiChiara three-pointer at 1:46 saw the Corsairs close the Engineers margin to 74-69.
Despite the momentum, UMass Dartmouth was unable to equalize the game as WPI added a bucket and played solid defense down the stretch to secure the victory.
WPI was paced by Reidy, who had 20 points with three boards and three assists. Callahan added 16 points and was just shy of the double-double with nine assists on the night, while Bledsoe added 12 points.
The Corsairs were paced in the contest by Lopes, who recorded 16 points, including a perfect 8-for-8 from the free throw line. Flauto added 13 points with a game-high 10 rebounds for the double-double, also notching an assist with two blocks and a steal. DiChiara had a career-high 13 points, while Percy and Santos each added nine points.
UMass Dartmouth returns to action on Saturday, traveling to Babson Park for a 1pm showdown against the Beavers of Babson.
