WILLAMANTIC, Conn.   –   Junior Thomas Whelan (Bronx, NY/Fordham Prep) led four players in double-figures with 27 points, nine rebounds and four assists to lead the University of Southern Maine Huskies to an 84-73 win over the Eastern Connecticut State University Warriors in a Little East Conference men's basketball game Wednesday night at Geissler Gymnasium. 
 
Whelan was 9-for-15 from the field for his team-high 27 points.  Graduate student Bryce Lausier (Glenburn, Maine/Hampden Academy) added 24 points, nine rebounds, two assists and a blocked shot, shooting 11-for-17 from the field.  Junior Diego Colon (New Braunfels, Texas) had 13 points, five rebounds and two steals, while sophomore Brady Saunders (Brewer, Maine) tossed in 11 points, five rebounds and three assists.
 
Jalen Hamblin led all scorers with 29 points on 12-for-24 shooting for the Warriors.  He added six rebounds, two assists and two blocked shots.  Julian Sanchez went 7-for-14 from the floor for 16 points and 11 rebounds, while Dominick Dao had 14 points, and eight rebounds.
 
The Records:
Southern Maine (5-2, 1-0 LEC)
Eastern Connecticut (6-1, 0-1 LEC)
 
Series History:  Today's game marked the 90^th meeting between the University of Southern Maine and the Eastern Connecticut State University Warriors. ECSU leads the overall series 56-34; however, Southern Maine swept the Warriors in the 2023-2024 season, marking the first time since the 2007-2008 season that the Huskies won both regular season contests against ECSU.  The Huskies are 4-1 against the Warriors in their last five meetings.
 
How It Happened:

• In a back and forth first half, the Warriors trailed the Huskies 23-19 with 8:20 remaining until the halftime break after a layup from Whelan.  However, the Warriors were able to surge ahead with an 11-2 run over the next 2:33 of action to take the lead 30-25 with 5:47 on the clock. Sanchez (6) and Hamblin (5) combined for all 11 of ECSU's points in the run.   
• Down by five, Husky senior Stephen Gabriel III (Brockton, Mass./Bridgton Academy) scored three consecutive points, to make it a one possession game, 30-28.  Sanchez and Lausier exchanged buckets for each side, and the Warriors remained in front 32-30 with 4:04 on the game clock.
• ECSU outscored the Huskies 8-3 over the next 2:48 and led by seven, 40-33, with 19 seconds remaining in the first half following a jumper from Dao before USM's Lausier canned a last second driving layup to send the Huskies into the halftime break down by five, 40-35.
• ECSU opened the second half outscoring USM 4-1 on jumpers from Sanchez and Hamblin, and led by eight, 44-36, with less than a minute expired.  After a set of missed possessions on both sides of the ball, Southern Maine was able to snag its first lead since the seven-minute mark of the first half on a 12-0 run over the next 3:45 of action.  Shooting 5-for-6 from the field during the run, the Huskies led 48-44 with 15:02 to play.  Colon had six of the Huskies' 12 points in the run.
• The game remained close as both teams exchanged points.  A three from ECSU's Pedro Perry made it a 57-54 game with 11:42 to play before USM grew its lead to nine, 67-58, over the next 3:33 with a 10-4 spurt led by five points from Whelan.
• ECSU pulled to within two possession, 69-64, with 5:02 remaining on a jumper from Dao, but USM responded with six straight points to lead by 11, 75-64, over the next two minutes.  Colon, Gabriel III, and Lausier each scored for USM.
• Buckets from ECSU's Hamblin and USM's Saunders kept it an 11-point game, 77-66, with 2:27 to play before the Huskies took their largest lead of the game, 80-66, as Whelan scored his 25^th points of the game with 1:35 to go.
• ECSU cut its deficit to seven with 40 seconds to go, but Southern Maine closed the game out on the line with both Saunders and Whelan making 2-of-2 for the 84-73 final.

 
 
 
Inside The Stats:

• Southern Maine shot 55.9 percent (33-for-59) from the field. The Huskies were 62.1 percent from the floor in the second half, making 18-of-29 field goals. ECSU shot 36.8 percent for the game (28-for-76). After shooting 45.7 percent in the first half, the Warriors cooled to a 29.3 accuracy rate in the second half.
• Led by nine boards each from Lausier and Whelan, USM had a 42-36 advantage on the boards. ECSU had a 16-8 lead in offensive rebounds, and scored 11 second-chance points.

 
Up Next:
Southern Maine hosts Salem State in a non-conference game on Saturday, December 7 (1:00 pm), and then returns to Little East Conference action on the road at Rhode Island College on Wednesday, December 11 (7:30 pm). 
 
 
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