Box Score (PDF) | Postgame Interview | Highlights

LOWELL, Mass. – Redshirt-junior Jahad Thomas (Williamsport, Pa.) posted his second triple-double of the season to lead the UMass Lowell men's basketball team (11-16, 5-7 AE) to a 100-68 win against Maine (6-21, 2-10 AE) on Thursday evening at Costello Athletic Center.
 
The decision marked the River Hawks' largest margin of victory this season, in addition to marking their first 100-point outing on the year.
 
"It was such a team effort and everyone contributed tonight," said Head Coach Pat Duquette. "Jahad did a great job getting his teammates involved, rebounding the basketball and handling the basketball. Defensively, I thought we set the tone in the first half, we didn't give up many points. Once we started sharing the ball and shooting as well as we do, we were going to put up a lot of points. For us at this stage in our transition, to have a 30-point win in our conference is a great sign."
 
Thomas totaled 12 points, 14 rebounds and 10 assists in the contest. The River Hawks' offense was paced by a pair of 20+ point scorers, as sophomore Ryan Jones (Rio Rancho, N.M.) turned in a career-high 25 points and junior Matt Harris (Eire, Pa.) posted a season-best 23 points. Senior Tyler Livingston (Hudson, N.H.) rounded out the double-digit scorers with 14. As a team, UMass Lowell boasted 23 assists and a season-high 11 steals.
 
Although the offense for both sides was slow to get started, freshman Rinardo Perry (Washington, D.C.) scored the first two buckets of the night to put the River Hawks on top. Maine was able to pull within one at 7-6 before Thomas sparked 13 consecutive points for the home team to give UMass Lowell a 20-6 edge with 10:55 remaining in the first half.
 
The Black Bears followed with a 14-4 spurt, making it a two-possession margin, 24-20, at 6:49. It continued to be a game of runs, as the River Hawks responded with the next 12 points, including five each from Livingston and Jones, to extend the squad's lead to 36-20 with 2:47 left in the half. The visitors would close the gap back to 10 in the waning minutes of the first, but the River Hawks scored five of the last seven points before the break to take a 41-28 edge into the locker room.
 
UMass Lowell was aggressive coming out of halftime, registering triples on each of its first four possessions. Thomas added a dunk in transition, and Jones and Perry converted on free throws to help their team push its lead to 60-30 with 16:07 still to go.
 
Jones and Livingston knocked down back-to-back threes to give the River Hawks their largest buffer, a 32-point spread with 14:45 left. Maine worked to cut the difference to 82-61 at 6:10, but the visitors would not come any closer.
 
Wes Myers and Austin Howard led the Black Bears with 11 and 10 points, respectively, in the outing.
 
Thursday's contest marked the 10th meeting between UMass Lowell and Maine in the sport of men's basketball. The River Hawks, who now own a 7-3 advantage in the all-time series against the Black Bears, will head to Hartford for a 2 p.m. tipoff on Sunday, February 12.