DARTMOUTH, Mass. – Despite double-figures from three different players, the UMass Dartmouth men's basketball team could not battle back, falling 89-80 to the University of Southern Maine in Little East Conference action on Saturday at Tripp Gym. The Huskies improve to 15-9 overall and 10-5 in conference play, while the Corsairs move to 12-11 with a 6-8 mark in the LEC.
It was a dominant start for the visiting Huskies as they opened up an 11-2 advantage through the first four minutes of play. The Corsairs countered as sophomore guard
Danny Reyes started a 14-3 run that saw the lead shift to UMD (13-12) on a three-pointer from senior guard
Nic Boyd at 13:47.
Another Boyd trey pushed the Corsairs out to a 16-14 lead, but USM countered to tie and pulled back into the lead on a three-pointer from Noah Dowling at 11:55 (19-16). A driving layup from senior guard
Darius Peterson tied the game at 21-all and the two teams continued to battle – neither straying by more than two points as they rallied to tie three more times.
Locked in a 28-all score, a hook shot from senior center
Ryan Flauto pulled the Corsairs ahead 30-28 with 6:31 to play, but Southern Maine continued to find the net, regaining the lead before a pair of free throws from Reyes tied it once more at 32-32 with 5:03 to go in the half.
The score continued to see-saw between the two teams as the squad's found themselves in another tie (34-34) before a driving layup from Reyes made it a 36-35 lead for the home team with 3:48 on the clock.
Despite the momentum, the game continued to go back-and-forth as another Reyes layup put the Corsairs up 40-39, but an ensuing bucket from USM's Gabe Lash gave the visitors back the narrow 41-40 lead with 54 seconds in the half.
Out of the intermission, the Huskies capitalized on a quick three-pointer from Dowling, before a turn-around jumper by senior center
Cam Dunbury closed the gap to two (44-42) in the first minute of play.
The Corsairs continued to battle back, rallying it to a 48-48 tie behind buckets from Flauto and Reyes, but USM continued to find the mark from three-point range as Dowling nailed his third of the contest to regain the lead (51-48) for the Huskies with 16:43 on the clock.
Boyd and Reyes helped turn the tides from a 53-50 deficit to a one-point (54-53) lead at the 15:02 mark and the Corsairs continued to rally, later tying the game at 56-all on a pair of free throws from Reyes. Despite the momentum, UMD could not hold off the Huskies sharp shooting from the point as three's from Dowling and Galley opened up a 64-58 advantage with 12:00 to play.
The Huskies continued to capitalize in the paint, opening up a 10-point lead but UMass Dartmouth refused to back down soon after as Dunbury laid down seven straight points to swing the score to three points (81-78) with 2:44 left in regulation. The Huskies took advantage of an untimely foul for the Corsairs, draining a pair of free throws and Whelan then hit a driving layup to regain a seven-point (85-78) lead with 1:03 remaining.
UMass Dartmouth rebounded at the free throw line as Peterson drained two, but the Huskies held the momentum till the end, widening the gap back to xxx to conclude the game action.
Reyes led the Corsairs in scoring, posting 23 points with nine rebounds, adding five assists, a block and a steal. Flauto added a double-double of 22 points and 12 rebounds, posting an assist as well, while Dunbury had nine points, six rebounds, three outstanding blocks and two steals. Boyd also reached double-figures, notching 14 points with a rebound and a steal.
The Corsairs are back on the court on Wednesday, traveling to UMass Boston for a 7pm Little East matchup against the Beacons.
