BOSTON – Senior
Chance Dixon (Lake Worth, Fla.) and sophomore
Tommy Whelan (Bronx, N.Y./Fordham Prep) combined for 43 points to lead the University of Southern Maine Huskies to a 68-60 win over the UMass Boston Beacons in a Little East Conference men's basketball game Wednesday night at the Clark Athletic Center.
Whelan scored 14 of his 20 points in the second half, while Dixon added 12 as the Huskies rallied from a slow first half. Whelan was 9-for-12 from the field, adding eight rebounds, while Dixon was 7-for-13 (3-for-8 from three) and 6-for-6 from the free throw line. Dixon added four rebounds and three assists. Senior
Cody Hawes (Carmel, Maine/Hermon) set a career-high with 17 rebounds, and added eight points.
The Records:
Southern Maine (6-6, 2-2 Little East)
UMass Boston (2-11, 1-3 Little East)
Today's game marked the 112
th meeting between the University of Southern Maine Huskies and the UMass Boston Beacons. Southern Maine leads the overall series 67-46 all-time. The Huskies and the Beacons split the 2022-2023 series. UMass Boston defeated the Huskies in Gorham 66-60 (January 18, 2023), while Southern Maine defeated UMB 76-60 on February 15, 2023.
How It Happened:
- The Huskies started the game ice-cold from the field missing on their first 14 field goal attempts and UMass Boston led 13-0 with 13:16 remaining in the opening half following a three from Carson Meczywor. USM sophomore Joe Longoria (New Braunfels, Texas) scored the Huskies' first point of the game with one of two free throws before making it a 13-3 game with a jumper at the 12:15 mark for USM's first bucket of the game.
- Longoria's bucket got the Huskies rolling as they outscored UMass Boston 19-5 over the next 7:13 to take a one-possession lead 20-18 with 5:18 until the half. Dixon scored six points in the run as the Huskies, who were previously 0-for-14 from the floor, when 7-for-10 during the run.
- Both teams traded baskets before the halftime break. Dixon gave USM a 29-27 lead with a layup for his 11th points of the first half, but the Beacons scored the final bucket of the first half on a layup from Connor Walden for the 29-29 halftime score.
- The game remained neck-and-neck in the second half. Down 39-37 following a four-point play from UMB's Emanuel Zayas, the Huskies surged ahead with a 6-0 run to lead 43-39 on a layup from Whelan with 11:44 to play. USM's lead was short lived however as the Beacons counted with a 6-0 run of their own for a 45-43 lead with 10:24 to play.
- Both teams continued to trade baskets and the lead over the next five minutes. A three from UMB's Zayas at the 6:16 mark gave the Beacons a 53-51 advantage, but the Huskies took control over the next 3:52 with an 11-0 run to surge ahead 62-53 with 2:09 left in the game. Going 4-for-5 from the field during the pivotal run, and 3-for-3 from the free throw line, the Huskies relied on freshman Brady Saunders (Brewer, Maine) for the spark. Saunders scored all five of his points in the run, including a traditional three-point play.
- UMB kept itself in the game with a quick 5-0 swing on a three from Zayas and a layup from Alex Woolery to make it a two-possession game 62-58 with 1:47 to play, but the Huskies scored the next six points unanswered to lock in the win. Dixon was 4-for-4 from the free throw line during that stretch, while Whelan scored his 20th points of the game with the Huskies' final field goal.
Inside The Stats:
- The Huskies finished the game shooting 45.6 percent (26-for-57) from the field despite going 0-for-14 from the field to start the game. The Huskies shot 11-for-32 (34.4 percent) in the first half, and 15-for-25 (60.0 percent) in the second half.
- Led by Hawes' career night, USM outrebounded the Beacons 44-31. Hawes' previous career-high mark for rebounding was 15.
Up Next:
Southern Maine is home for its next two contests facing Western Connecticut on Saturday, January 6 (3:00 pm) and UMass Dartmouth on Thursday, January 11 (3:00 pm) – both games are LEC contests.
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