UMBC

Baltimore, Md.—Five Retrievers scored in double figures as the UMBC men’s basketball team outgunned league rival Hartford, 73-68 at the RAC Arena.

Both teams are now 3-3 in America East play. The Retrievers snapped a three-game losing streak and improved to 7-12 overall, while Hartford lost for the third time in four outings and saw its record even out at 9-9.

Retriever junior guard Brian Hodges led all scorers with 20 points, marking his tenth straight game in double figures. However, senior guard Chris Pugh earned UMBC’s Marlow Sports America East Player of the Game honors with 15 points, as he hit five of eight shots from behind the arc. Pugh added five assists and five rebounds. Freshman post Justin Fry posted a season high 14 points.

Hawk backcourt mates Joe Zeglinski and Michael Turner each scored 19 points. Zeglinski hit five of nine from three-point range and earned Hartford’s Player of the Game honor.

The Retrievers never trailed, but could never shake the pesky Hawks. They built leads of ten points (22-12) and eight points (31-23) in the first half, only to see UH cut the deficit to one point each time. Jay Greene’s three-pointer with two seconds remaining in the half gave the Retrievers a 36-32 lead at intermission.

UMBC used a 10-0 run early in the second half to build a 52-41 lead with 12:11 remaining, but again, Hartford found its range and gradually whittled the lead to two points at 68-66 on a Jaret Von Rosenberg jumper with 3:37 remaining. Then Fry came up big on UMBC’s next two possessions, hitting a pair of free throws with 2:45 remaining and adding a baseline jumper with 1:54 to play to restore the lead to 72-66. Ten seconds later, Turner hit an off-balance jumper in the lane, but that would be the Hawks’ final points. UMBC missed two front ends of one-and-ones, but tightened their defense and forced three poor Hartford shots in the final minute. Greene’s free throw with 10 seconds left was the lone point in the final 1:40.

Hodges, leading the nation by scoring 17.6 points per game in his 14 “non-starts”, got the starting nod in this contest for the first time since a November 25 start at Michigan. Entering play tonight, Hodges led the America East in scoring in league contests at 20.6 per game. Retriever sophomore guard Thomas Young scored in double figures for the sixth straight game, as he contributed 12 points, while Greene added ten points, six assists and no turnovers in 26 minutes.

Senior forward Mike Housman garnered a career high 11 rebounds as UMBC outboarded Hartford, 36-31. UMBC and Hartford entered the game shooting 31.4% and 29.6% respectively from three-point range, eighth and last in the league, but the Retrievers hit 10 of 21 and the Hawks were 10 of 22.

UMBC goes back to the road as they take on Boston University at Case Gymnasium on Sunday.