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Men's Basketball to Host UNH
Feb. 17, 2006
Complete Release in PDF Format
The University of Maine men's basketball team returns home to host New Hampshire on Sunday, February 19. Maine enters the game with a record of 9-15 overall and 4-9 in America East play after dropping a decision to Vermont on Wednesday night. New Hampshire enters the game with a record of 10-15 overall and 7-7 in conference play. The Wildcats are coming off a 59-51 victory over Vermont on Wednesday night. A LOOK BACK: The University of Maine men's basketball team fell to Vermont 79-48 on Wednesday. The two teams began the game on a rapid scoring pace and were tied 8-8 with 15:49 remaining in the first half. Olli Ahvenniemi (Vaasa, Finland) and Philippe Tchekane Bofia (Yaounde, Cameroon) combined to score Maine's first eight points. Rashard Turner (Peekskill, N.Y.) then drained a three-point field goal to give Maine an 11-9 lead. The two teams continued to trade hoops and were again knotted at 16-16. ?Vermont used a 13-0 run to take a 27-16 lead. Chris Bruff (Bloomfield, Conn.) snapped the Vermont run with a hoop in the paint with 5:43 left in the first half. Bruff scored the next basket and the Black Bears cut the Vermont lead to 27-20. Vermont's Mike Trimboli answered with a three-point field goal and the Catamounts regained a 10-point lead. Vermont ended the half on a 10-2 run. ?Vermont opened the second half on an 11-6 run to extend its lead to 51-30 with 15:50 remaining in the game. The Catamounts continued to add to their lead throughout the second half. Vermont led 64-37 with 7:01 remaining in the game. ? ?Maine was led by Bruff who finished with 11 points and six rebounds in the game. Philippe Tchekane Bofia added 10 points and four rebounds for the Black Bears. SCOUTING THE BLACK BEARS: Maine is led by Ernest Turner who is averaging 14.9 points per game and 4.2 rebounds a contest. He is recording 1.5 steals per game. Tchekane Bofia is adding 9.9 points per game and 5.7 rebounds a game. Jon Sheets (Grass Valley, Calif.) is chipping in with 9.7 points per game. He has hit a team-high 58 three-point field goals this season and is dishing out 2.8 assists per game. Rashard Turner is adding 9.4 points per game and has a team-high 3.0 assists per game. Bruff is chipping in with 6.9 points per game and 4.2 rebounds a contest. Olli Ahvenniemi (Vaasa, Finland) is adding 6.1 points per game. He leads the Black Bears in rebounds, with 6.1 per game, and in blocks, averaging 2.6 per game. ?Maine is scoring 64.0 points per game, while its opponents are scoring 68.2 points per game. The Black Bears are shooting 41.1 percent from the floor, while their opponents are connecting 42.9 percent from the floor. SHEETS NEARING THREE-POINT LEADERS: Jon Sheets is among the single season three-point field goal leaders at Maine. He currently has 58 three-point field goals which ranks tied for ninth on the single season leaders list. THEFT AT VERMONT: Maine recorded 12 steals in its game at Vermont. It is the third most steals this season in a game for Maine and the most against an America East opponent. Jon Sheets led the way with three steals while Tchekane Bofia, Jason Hight (Westbrook, Maine) and Freddy Petkus each recorded two. BLACK BEARS HONORED FOR SUCCESS IN THE CLASSROOM: The men's basketball team had six players honored as scholar-athletes. They all have achieved a 3.0 grade point average or better. Olli Ahvenniemi earned a silver medal as a two-time selection, while Ammar Harknell (Stockholm, Sweden) and Jesse Keith (Levant, Maine) received bronze medals as first-time honorees. Junior Bernal (Manhattan, N.Y.), Philippe Tchekane Bofia and Rashard Turner were all named "Rising Stars" as they received a 3.0 or better in their first semester at Maine.
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