Feb. 7, 2009

Box Score

Junior G Kevin Carr (Lancaster, OH) led four players in double digits with 16 points as UMass Lowell defeated Merrimack College, 77-72, Saturday afternoon in a Northeast-10 Conference men's basketball tilt at the Volpe Gymnasium.

The victory puts the River Hawks back in the win column after Wednesday's 70-68 loss at Bentley, which halted a string of 13 consecutive wins. UMass Lowell improved to 18-4 overall and 13-4 in the NE-10, good for sole possession of second place.

Merrimack, suffering its third straight loss, slipped to 15-7 overall and 11-6 in the Conference. The win also avenged the Warriors' 85-79 victory on Nov. 22.

"I have mixed feelings with this victory," said UML Head Coach Greg Herenda. "I have so much respect for Coach Hammel, but I am so proud of our team. It's a strange feeling but at the end of the day we beat a very good team on their court."

Carr converted 5 of 9 field goals attempts, including 4 of 6 from 3-point range. Junior F Victor Colon (Chicago, IL) added 15 points and eight rebounds, hitting 6 of 10 field goals, while junior G Craig Heatherly (Mishawaka, IN) chipped in 14 points (5-10 field goal shooting.

Freshman G Kyle Caiola (Parma, OH) added 10 points and three assists.

Sophomore G Darin Mency led the Warriors with 23 points while sophomore G Darren Duncan added 18 points and six assists. Freshman G Wayne Mack chipped in 10 points.

The River Hawks shot .510 for the game (26-51) while Merrimack struggled to a .390 clip (23-59). UML's shooting compensated for a season-high 29 turnovers (opposed to 14 by Merrimack) as the Warriors held only a 17-12 scoring edge on points off turnovers.

Additionally, the River Hawks out shot Merrimack from long range, 27-18.

UMass Lowell also received a lift from its bench, outscoring that of Merrimack's, 22-13, led by eight points and five assists from freshman G Marcus Johnson (South Bend, IN) and six points apiece from Robbie Walton (South Boston, MA) and six points, four assists and four rebounds from sophomore G Max Kerman (Watertown, MA).

"Our depth really paid off today," Herenda noted. "When Kyle Caiola got into foul trouble Robbie Walton really stepped up big for us and Marcus Johnson made a number of huge plays for us."

UMass Lowell built a 41-30 lead at the break and never let the Warriors within five points until the final seconds of the game.

Leading 70-56 with 2:18 left to play, Merrimack used a 14-5 run to cut the deficit to 75-72 with 17 seconds remaining. Duncan scored nine points in the run. Carr, however, was fouled after receiving the inbound and meshed a pair of free throws to cap the scoring and seal the win.

In the first half, UMass Lowell led 14-12 midway through, but went on a 10-2 run (Heatherly five points, Colon four) to post a 24-14 cushion with 9:48 left to play.

"Victor and Kevin made cruial shots, but again our defense remains the key to our success," Herenda said. "We contained a very potent offense today. I could not be happier with every single player that wore a UMass Lowell jersey today."