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Men's Basketball Falls to UMBC 80-77
Feb. 22, 2007 BALTIMORE, Md. -- The University of Maine men's basketball team fell to UMBC 80-77 on Thursday night in Baltimore, Md. The Black Bears drop to 11-17 overall and 6-9 in America East play. UMBC improves to 11-17 overall and 7-8 in conference play. Maine cut a 10-point deficit to just one point in the final minute and had a chance to tie the game in the final seconds but saw both shots hit off the rim. Kevin Reed (Yarmouth, Mass.) tied the Maine record for career games played as he saw action in his 117th career tilt. Maine jumped out to an early 8-2 lead with 14:37 remaining in the first half. Chris Bruff (Bloomfield, Conn.) scored six of Maine's first eight points. Maine extended its lead to 26-16 when Reed drained his second three-point field goal of the half with 8:11 remaining. With that trey, Reed tied Tony Orciari (Vermont 1997-2001) for third place on the America East career three-point field goal list with 305. UMBC responded and pulled to within four points at 30-26 with 3:49 left in the first half. The Retrievers took their first lead of the game when Tom Young hit a hoop with under three minutes to play in the first half. UMBC took a 37-34 lead into halftime. Reed and Bruff each had 10 points to pace the Black Bears in the first half. UMBC opened the second half on a 7-2 run to take a 44-36 lead. Mike Housman had five of UMBC's seven points during the run. The Retrievers pushed their lead to 10 points at 51-41 with just under 15 minutes remaining in the game. Maine used a 5-0 run to cut the deficit to just five points, but UMBC answered back with a three-point field goal by Brian Hodges. Maine cut the lead to six points after Jon Sheets (Grass Valley, Calif.) was fouled in the act of shooting a three-pointers and was able to convert two free throws with 7:34 to play in the game. UMBC was able to push the lead back to double digits minutes later. Every time, however, Maine would respond. The Black Bears cut the lead to five points after a Sheets three-point field goal and a pair of Reed free throws. The Black Bears got to within three points after a second pair of Reed free throws with just under four minutes remaining in the game. The Retrievers answered back with a hoop.
Maine pulled to within one point when Philippe Tchekane Bofia (Yaounde, Cameroon) drained a three-point field goal just under 30 seconds remaining in the game. Tom Young then converted a pair of free throws to give UMBC an 80-77 lead with just 24 seconds remaining in the game. Maine had a pair of shots to tie the game in the final seconds, but both shots just missed. Reed led Maine with 24 points and five rebounds. Chris Bruff added 14 points and six rebounds, while Junior Bernal (Manhattan, N.Y.) chipped in with 12 points and six steals. The Black Bears return home on Sunday, February 22 when they host Stony Brook at 1 pm at Alfond Arena. Before the game Maine will honor seniors Jon Sheet, Olli Ahvenniemi (Vaasa, Finland), Chris Bruff and Kevin Reed. Tickets are available at the door or by calling 207-581-BEAR or 1-800-756-TEAM. -U-M- |
