Box Score
Box Score (PDF)

WEST HARTFORD, Conn. – Redshirt-freshman Jahad Thomas (Williamsport, Pa.) led three double-digit scorers for the UMass Lowell men's basketball team (9-9, 3-2) with 16 points in a 68-62 overtime heartbreaker at Hartford (10-7, 3-1) on Saturday evening.
 
"I'm really proud of my guys," said Head Coach Pat Duquette. "They fought especially hard in the second half against one of the better teams in the league. We were missing our starting point guard and couldn't buy a bucket in the first half, but these guys kept believing in themselves. I thought they played really hard and deserved to win in a lot of ways. With the exception of maybe a couple plays down the stretch, where we would have liked to see a little bit more composure, they put themselves in a position to win a tough game on the road against a good team, so I'm happy with the effort."
 
Thomas also paced the River Hawks on the glass with nine rebounds. Freshman Matt Harris (Erie, Pa.) added 14 points, while classmate Lance Crawford (Davie, Fla.) tallied 11 points and a personal-best six assists.
 
Although UMass Lowell trailed by as many as nine, Harris used five straight points to change the momentum with less than nine minutes to play in the second half and freshman Brad Schaub (Marlette, Mich.) followed with a layup, giving the visitors their first lead since the opening minute of the game at 43-39. Schaub then added a long ball, but Hartford pulled within two, 46-44, with 5:35 to go.
 
Hartford went over four minutes without a field goal, however the team came to life when Corban Wroe hit a fast-break layup and Just Graham drained a three to tie the game at 54-54 with just 18 seconds left and force overtime.
 
The Hawks scored the first two buckets of the extra period to pull ahead before Thomas went 2-for-2 at the line for UMass Lowell's first points, making the score 58-56 with less than two minutes to play. The River Hawks would go on to score three times from the floor, but Hartford went 7-for-10 from the charity stripe, securing the 68-62 victory.
 
UMass Lowell opened the outing on a two-handed dunk by redshirt-senior Kerry Weldon (New York, N.Y.), but the teams traded buckets in the early minutes with five quick lead changes before Hartford scored seven in a row to take a 12-6 edge at 14:29.
 
Sophomore Tyler Livingston (Hudson, N.H.) snapped the silence for the River Hawks and sparked a 10-4 spurt on a three from the top of the key with 12:04 remaining in the first. Thomas added a three-point play during the stretch and senior Chad Holley (New York, N.Y.) capped it off on a jumper from long range, knotting the score at 16-16 at 7:36.
 
Hartford answered with back-to-back threes to regain the lead that it would hold onto for the remainder of the period. UMass Lowell was able to cut the buffer back to two on three occasions in the waning minutes, but the home team owned a 33-24 advantage heading into the break.
 
Mark Nwakamma logged a double-double of 20 points and 11 rebounds for the Hawks. As a whole, Hartford shot 41.1% (23-56) from the field.
 
Saturday's contest marked the eighth meeting between UMass Lowell and Hartford in the sport of men's basketball. The Hawks now lead the all-time series, 7-1. The River Hawks will wrap up its three-game road swing at New Hampshire on Monday, January 19. Tipoff for that contest, which is the second game of a doubleheader with the UMass Lowell women's basketball team, is slated for 3:30 p.m.