DARTMOUTH, Mass. –Despite five Corsairs posting double figures, UMass Dartmouth men's basketball team fell against Eastern Connecticut State University, 96-86, on Wednesday evening in Little East Conference (LEC) play from the Tripp Athletic Center. The Corsairs moved to a 4-7 conference record and 10-10 overall while the Warriors improved to a 4-6 Little East mark.
The Warriors jumped out to a quick 6-0 lead thanks to two triples by senior guard Dominick Dao in the opening minutes of action. The Corsairs countered to pull it to 8-4 at the 17:46 mark as senior
Nic Boyd and
Cam Dunbury each drained a bucket and UMD continued to close the gap.
Boyd – a guard – knocked in a three off a feed from sophomore guard
Danny Reyes making it a 10-7 game, which was followed soon after by a three-point shot from freshman guard
Mahdee McNair to tie it at 12-all.
The Warriors quickly rebounded, using a 10-2 run to turn it into a 22-16 advantage with 12:30 to play in the frame. A layup by senior center
Ryan Flauto later narrowed the margin to 24-21 and a trey from Boyd saw it tied once again at 24-all with 10:11 on the clock.
Both squads continued to counter with a three-pointer from senior guard
Trent Santos giving UMD a 28-27 lead before Eastern answered to regain the lead. The Corsairs continued to hold the advantage as a three from sophomore guard
Camden DiChiara opened a five-point margin (40-35), but a tip-in from Warriors senior forward Soul Darby tied the game once again (3-43) with 2:45 to go.
The squads went back-and-forth again, tying at 47-all before a last second three from Dao saw the visitors head into the locker room with the 50-47 lead.
Out of the intermission, the Warriors went on an 8-0 run to build up a 58-47 score, but countered at 12:31 as Santos drained a three to make it a 66-63 game. A free throw make by rookie guard
Kordell Philemon at 8:15 closed the gap to two (75-73) and jumpers later from Boyd and Reyes pushed the Corsairs into a 79-78 lead with 4:40 remaining.
Eastern rebounded to tie the contest and took the lead as free throws and a trey from Dao saw the visitors go up 86-84. The Warriors continued to press, expanding their lead for the 10-point differential to close out the game.
Flauto led the way for the Corsairs, recording a team-high 19 points on 9-12 shooting from the floor. He added seven boards and two assists with a block. Reyes posted 15 points with a team-high eight rebounds and eight assists, while Boyd added 14 points with five assists and a steal. McNair dropped in 13 points, while Santos rounded out the double-figure scorers with 11 points and four rebounds.
The Corsairs return to the court on Saturday, traveling to Plymouth State for a 2pm showdown against the Panthers.
