Box Score LOWELL, Mass. – Fifth year
Quinton Mincey (Upper Marlboro, Md.) tallied a game-high 20 points, as the UMass Lowell men's basketball team (7-4) held on down the stretch to close out a 69-62 victory against LIU (4-8) on Wednesday evening at Costello Athletic Center.
In a game that featured eight lead changes, the teams were tied at 58-58 with four minutes to go. A minute later, the River Hawks used every second of the shot clock to get Mincey an open look for a pivotal three to regain the upper hand. Then with just over a minute left when the Sharks were back within two, Mincey came up clutch again from long range, giving the team the buffer it needed to go onto seal the decision at the foul line.
"I'm always glad to get a win, but I'm not real pleased with some of the things we did tonight," said Head Coach
Pat Duquette. "We have to get better at some things, so hopefully that was a humbling experience. LIU is a good team, they play hard and I was really impressed. They muck it up, foul you and make you be strong with the ball, which we were not at times, but I have to give LIU a lot of credit. We did not shoot well, unfortunately, at home, but I don't have any problem with the shots we took. I want my guys to shoot the ball with confidence and continue to take their open looks."
Brooks, who added to the offense with 18 points and led the way on the glass with nine boards, registered eight blocks to become UMass Lowell's all-time leader in that category, surpassing a 35-year-old record to total 248 so far. Senior
Cam Morris III (Alexander City, Ala.) rounded out the double-digit scorers with 13 points, while fifth year
Anthony Blunt (Glen Dale, Md.) finished with five assists.
Both sides worked to settle in and find their footing offensively in the early minutes, as Morris III sunk the first bucket of the night. Senior
Quincy Clark (Columbus, Ohio) also added an early layup, and although the Sharks used back-to-back baskets to jump in front by one, Morris III scored four straight of his own to give the home team a 9-6 advantage with 14:09 remaining in the first half.
Five lead changes ensued before Mincey and Brooks combined for seven unanswered points, creating a 20-14 edge for their squad at 8:51. The Sharks would make it a one-possession game, but Brooks caught fire, helping to ignite a 16-5 scoring stretch for the River Hawks that included his pretty, around-the-rim dunk and threes from Mincey and Covington to help extend the buffer to double-digits for the first time at 36-22 with seconds to play in the first.
The Sharks ended the first and started the second with triples before adding five straight points two minutes into the new period to cut the difference to just five. Morris III and Brooks accounted for the River Hawks' first field goals of the second half, but the visitors responded with six in a row to close the gap to just one, 42-41, with 14:14 still to play.
Freshman Marin Somerville (Bowie, Md.) converted at the line and Blunt dished a good pass under the hoop to Brooks for the dunk as part of a quick, 6-2 spurt, regaining a two-possession margin, but LIU was able to pull within one, 48-47, at 10:38.
Brooks tipped in a bucket to keep his side in front and two minutes later Somerville drained a trey to make it 54-49 with eight minutes to play. The sides traded free throws for the next two minutes before the Sharks scored seven straight points to erase the difference, 58-58, at 4:01, setting up the tight finish.
The River Hawks are back in action on Saturday, December 14 when they host Dartmouth of the Ivy League at Costello Athletic Center at 2 p.m.
