BOSTON, Mass. – The UMass Boston men's basketball team (2-0) hosted their second contest of the season and rallied from seven down at halftime to record a 76-73 victory over UMaine-Farmington (1-1) on Thursday afternoon from the Clark Athletic Center.
How it Happened
- The Beavers jumped out to an early 8-7 lead despite seven early points from senior Max Depina before the Beacons rattled off seven unanswered points as junior Davon Sanders hit a triple and both Depina and senior Steven Cordero scored as UMass Boston took a 14-8 advantage.
- After five straight UMaine-Farmington points, Sanders connected on his second three-pointer of the afternoon before a Sanders fastbreak layup gave the Beacons a 20-17 lead with 10:22 remaining in the first half.
- Depina and junior Romario Lauriston combined for UMass Boston's next six points before a freshman Trokon Harris layup kept the Beacon advantage at three at 28-25.
- The two teams continued to trade baskets, highlighted by Depina and Harris points as well as a freshman Ian Piper free throw keeping the lead at one before the Beavers ended the half on a 14-6 run to take a 46-39 edge into the locker room.
- The Beacons opened the second half with seven unanswered points as Harris, Depina, and Sanders all scored, with Sanders burying a triple before a Zach McLaughlin layup ended the UMass Boston run.
- The teams then traded leads twice as junior Mikell Orelus and Depina combined for six points before a layup from Sanders off a feed from Cordero gave the Beacons a 58-56 advantage with 11:34 to play.
- The Beavers led by as many as six over the remainder of the second half before UMass Boston rattled off 12 straight points as Harris and Cordero each scored four and sophomore Ivan Yhomby and Orelus added a bucket to give the home side a 72-66 lead with 4:49 remaining.
- UMaine-Farmington cut the deficit to three with a made free throw and layup before a Yhomby layup pushed the Beacon lead to five with 1:57 to go.
- The Beavers scored the next four points, but the UMass Boston defense forced a missed layup with 0:05 remaining and Yhomby hit a pair of free throws with 0.7 to play before U-Maine Farmington called timeout.
- Jason Reynolds had a look from just over half court at the buzzer that missed as the Beacons prevailed 76-73.
Inside the Box Score
- UMass Boston made 29 shots, grabbed 39 rebounds, and dished out 21 assists, and forced 14 turnovers.
- Depina scored a career-high 27 points on 11-18 shooting and pulled down 10 rebounds, for his first double-double of the year.
- Sanders (16) and Harris (10) also reached double-figures for the Beacons.
- Cordero dished out a team-high seven assists and added eight points.
What's Next
The Beacons will close out a three-game homestand on Saturday afternoon when they welcome Salem State to Boston for a non-conference contest beginning at 2:00 p.m.
