DANBURY, Conn. – Holding a slim 65-63 lead with 5:17 to play in regulation, the Western Connecticut State University Colonials rattled off a game-deciding 7-0 run to hold off the University of Southern Maine Huskies in a 76-68 win in Little East Conference men's basketball action Saturday afternoon at Feldman Arena.

The win snaps a two-game slide for the Colonials who improve to 6-3 overall and 2-0 in the Little East Conference.  Southern Maine evens its record at 5-5 and is 0-2 in the Little East.

Senior Luis Bridtter (Stamford, Conn.) led four Western Connecticut players in double figures with 22 points and 10 rebounds.  Senior Phil Starks (Hartford, Conn./Prince Tech) added 15 points, 13 in the second half, while junior Tre'Von Perry  (Waterbury, Conn./Holy Cross) had 13 points and a game-high 11 rebounds.   Freshman Jauch Green (Hartford, Conn./Cromwell) finished with 11 points.

Senior Jose Nouchanthavong (Westbrook, Maine) led all scored with 25 points, including a 6-for-8 effort from three-point range.  Junior Atencio Martin (Kittery, Maine/Traip Academy) had 16 points, nine rebounds and two assists, while classmate Zach Leal (York, Maine) tossed in 13 points, adding four steals and three assists.

 Falling behind by 10, 43-33 at the half, Southern Maine clawed its way back into the game and trailed by two, 65-63, on a Nouchanthavong three with 5:17 to play.  Nouchanthavong's three was his eighth point in a 15-2 run for the Huskies.  With its lead cut to a single possession, Western Connecticut responded with the pivotal 7-0 run over the next two minutes and 26 seconds to lead 72-63.  Starks and Perry combined for all seven of the Colonials points, which was keyed by a pair of jumpers from Starks.  A layup from senior Cole Libby (Buxton, Maine/Bonny Eagle) stopped the Colonial surge cutting USM's deficit to 72-65, but Western responded with four consecutive points on another jumper from Starks and a layup from Green to lead 76-65 with 1:17 sealing the win.

Southern Maine returns to action after the holiday break and will compete at the Grand Canyon Classic in Arizona.  USM faces Loras on Monday, December 28 (5:00 p.m.) in its first game. Western Connecticut faces Lehman on Tuesday, December 29 (6:00 p.m.) in the first game of the Coaches vs. Cancer Tournament in Bronx, N.Y.

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