DARTMOUTH, Mass. – Powered by a solid defensive effort, the UMass Dartmouth men's basketball team defeated Plymouth State University, 86-66, on Saturday afternoon in Little East Conference (LEC) action from the Tripp Athletic Center. The Corsairs move to a 3-4 Little East mark with a victory over the Panthers who fell to 1-6 in conference play.
The Panthers offense connected early as Yansel Reyes nailed a triple to finish a 7-0 opening run to start the conference tilt. Sophomore guard
Camden DiChiara laid in the first basket for UMass Dartmouth followed by a jumper from senior center
Ryan Flauto to make it a 10-4 game. Shortly after, senior guard
Darius Peterson finished a free throw before first year guard
Jesse Basse posted his first basket of the afternoon to cut the visitors lead down to 12-8 with 11:56 on the clock. UMass Dartmouth capitalized from the charity stripe going 7-for-8 to grab a 15-14 edge at the midway point of the half.
After both teams exchanged baskets, Reyes drained a three-pointer to kick-start a 9-0 run which was capped off by a four-point play from DiChiara to take a 10-point lead. Plymouth State fought back after making three triples to regain a 32-30 advantage with under three minutes to go in the first half. Boyd and DiChiara each knocked down a triple apiece before Flauto laid in a basket to close out the opening half with 40-34 lead heading into halftime.
First year guard
Mahdee McNair made an early statement in the second half with a one-hand slam to put the Corsairs back up 44-34. UMass Dartmouth continued to generate momentum with 12 unanswered points featuring five points from Flauto and another three-pointer by DiChiara to take a commanding 56-37 lead. The Panthers cut the Corsairs advantage with a pair of triples to make it 58-46 contest. Shortly after checking into the game, sophomore guard
Isaiah Makor made a quick impact after posting his first basket in the paint to maintain a 14-point edge with 10:50 on the clock.
UMass Dartmouth extended their lead to 69-53 thanks to a 7-2 run started by the second triple of the half for DiChiara. Approaching the last five minutes of action, Flauto finished a pair of free throws before kicking the ball out to McNair who drilled a corner triple to go ahead 76-57. The Corsairs cemented their third conference win after making 6-of-6 free throws in the last three minutes of play to defeat Plymouth State by a final score of 86-66 from the Tripp Athletic Center.
Reyes (5-11 FG, 1-1 3FG, 8-8 FT) and DiChiara (7-11 FG, 4-4 3FG, 1-1 FT) each finished the game with 19 points apiece. Reyes grabbed eight defense rebounds and recorded three steals while DiChiara produced six boards and a blocked shot. Flauto notched his fifth double-double of the season with 15 points (5-13 FG, 5-5 FT) and 11 rebounds including an assist and one steal. Boyd rounded out the double figures with 14 points (4-11 FG, 1-5 3FG, 5-6 FT) in addition to a game-high five assists and four rebounds.
UMass Dartmouth travels to Keene State College for their next LEC match up on Wednesday, January 21 scheduled for a 7:30 p.m. tipoff.
