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LOWELL, Mass. – Redshirt-junior Christian Lutete (Silver Spring, Md.) paced five double-digit scorers for the UMass Lowell men's basketball team (6-6) with 20 points in a 110-63 victory against Maine Fort Kent (2-9) on Friday evening at the Tsongas Center.
 
With the victory, the River Hawks improve to 4-0 inside of friendly confines this season and extend its unbeaten streak at home to seven games, dating back to February 15, 2018.
 
"I thought we played much better in the second half tonight," said Head Coach Pat Duquette. "It was good to see a lot of different guys get significant minutes and help contribute to the win."
 
A total of 10 different River Hawks scored in the outing for the first time since December 9, 2017. Senior Ryan Jones (Rio Rancho, N.M.) totaled 19 points and eight assists, while freshman Alex Rivera (Lowell, Mass.) logged his first career double-double with 18 points and a team-high 12 rebounds. Sophomore Obadiah Noel (Frederick, Md.) and redshirt-senior Josh Gantz (Grove City, Ohio) rounded out the double-digit scorers with 14 and 10 points, respectively.
 
Freshman Darius Henderson (Pasadena, Calif.) won the opening tip, as four different River Hawk scorers combined for the first nine points of the night. The Bengals would get on the board with a layup, but Lutete knocked down a three from the far corner to spark a 13-4 run that gave the squad its first double-digit margin of the night, 22-6, with 15:14 remaining in the first half.
 
The River Hawks maintain at least a 13-point lead before UMFK used seven consecutive points to cut the margin back to just seven, 31-24, at 9:17. However, back-to-back triples from freshman Bryce Daley (Pittsfield, Mass.) and Rivera followed by five straight points from Noel and a long ball from Gantz extended the squad's buffer to 45-28 with 6:13 left in the period. The teams traded baskets in the waning minutes of the first, with Lutete tallying the last two of the half to help the River Hawks maintain that 17-point advantage at the break, 56-39.
 
Including seven points from Jones, UMass Lowell outscored the Bengals, 24-6, in the first seven minutes of the second half to put the game out of reach, 80-45. Rivera led the River Hawks with 13 second-half points, while freshman Allin Blunt (Bowie, Md.) added seven en route to the decisive, 110-63 decision.
 
As a team, UMass Lowell shot 55 percent on the night. The River Hawks will return to action on Tuesday, December 11 when they visit St. Francis Brooklyn for their final game before a 10-day break.