Jan. 13, 2011

Box Score

In a rematch of the 2010 Northeast-10 Conference Tournament Championship, the UMass Lowell men's basketball team defeated the Adelphi Panthers, 60-55, on Thursday afternoon in Costello Gymnasium.

Entering this afternoon's game, the teams had matching records, but with the victory, the River Hawks improve to 10-4 overall with a 6-4 clip in NE-10 action, while Adelphi falls to 9-5 with an even 5-5 record in conference play.

In the first half, UMass Lowell trailed by as many as 11, but chipped away at the Panther lead, as a three-pointer by Akeem Williams (Brockton, Mass.) with 1:39 remaining in the stanza that gave the River Hawks their first lead of the half (30-29). By the time they headed to the locker room, the squad was ahead by three, 34-31.

It took the Panthers three minutes to make their first field goal of the second half, but once they got on a roll, they hovered close to the River Hawks, never trailing by more than six after that bucket.

UMass Lowell held tight and despite Adelphi coming back within one point with four minutes remaining in regulation, the River Hawks never surrendered their lead in the second.

The Panthers were just three points shy of a tie after David Akinyooye sank a free throw with 30 seconds to go, but UMass Lowell's Williams nailed a pair with just 10 seconds left to secure the River Hawk victory.

"In the second half we shot only 18.5% and we still won the basketball game - which just shows the constitution of our team," said Head Coach Greg Herenda. "We really have a presence about us defensively. We don't quit - we were down big early, but I'm proud of the resolve we showed."

Williams finished the afternoon with a game-best 18 points, adding four rebounds, three assists and as many steals. Also scoring in double figures for the River Hawks were Romeo Diaz (Methuen, Mass.) and Matt Welch (Lowell, Mass.) with 13 and 11 points, respectively.

Diaz grabbed a team-best six rebounds and had a pair of blocks, while Welch tacked on four boards, a steal and a block. Junior Robbie Walton (South Boston, Mass.) tallied seven points in addition to four assists, three rebounds and as many steals.

"Romeo deserves a lot of the credit for today," Herenda said. "He made key baskets, key plays, key blocks, key rebounds. Just his attitude - he's grown up a lot and he's still just a sophomore. We've got him for 2 ½ more years."

Freshman Kerry Weldon (New York, N.Y.) had seven points and five rebounds, grabbing three steals, as well. Classmate Antonio Bivins (Miami, Fla.) chipped in four points and rebounds, two blocks, an assist and a steal.

Four Panthers finished the game scoring in double-figures, led by Akinyooye who had 14 points and added a game-high eight rebounds. Norron McDonald went 5-6 from the floor to finish with 13 points and Richar Byrd tallied 13 points on the day.

The River Hawks forced 18 Adelphi turnovers and despite committing 14 of their own, UMass Lowell capitalized by outscoring the Panthers 24-6 off miscues.

Next up for the River Hawks is a trip to Springfield, Mass. for a conference clash against the Yellow Jackets of American International College. The game will be held on Saturday, Jan. 15 at 3:30 p.m.