LOWELL, Mass. – Fifth years Max Brooks (Waldorf, Md.) and Quinton Mincey (Upper Marlboro, Md.) combined for 48 points, as the No. 6 seeded UMass Lowell men's basketball team (17-15) faced a 72-64 setback at No. 3 Maine (19-13) in the quarterfinals of the Jersey Mike's America East Playoffs on Saturday evening.
 
"I thought Maine played well, they earned the win and were the better team tonight on their home floor in a tremendous playoff atmosphere, so credit to them," said Head Coach Pat Duquette. "Disappointing and frustrating year for us to be perfectly honest. We felt like we should have been better, could have been better. We lost games every imaginable way and didn't catch many breaks or have much luck, but we didn't always put ourselves in position to be lucky, so that's on us. It's one of the few years that I think I can say that. Something was missing this year and I couldn't get ahold of it. Still proud the last five or six games of the way we played. Even though we didn't get the wins, we were playing against the best teams in the league. Just a tough year, but I still love my guys."
 
Brooks finished with a game-high 25 points and 10 rebounds for his 22^nd career double-double. The NCAA leader for field goal percentage, he shot 79% (11-14) from the field in the contest. Mincey added 23 points for his 16^th 20-point game this season. Fifth year Yuri Covington (Wilkes-Barre, Pa.) finished with four assists, as well.  
 
The River Hawks took care of their opportunities in the opening minutes, as freshman Martin Somerville (Bowie, Md.) sank a trey and Brooks tallied a pair of early floaters to help their side score nine of the first 11 points. Brooks and Mincey each tallied points to keep UMass Lowell in front by at least two possessions until the Black Bears recorded back-to-back buckets to cut the difference to 15-13 with 11:36 remaining in the first half.
 
Senior Xzavier Lino (Phoenix, Ariz.) then turned a steal by senior Cam Morris III (Alexander City, Ala.) into two points to keep the visitors on top, but Maine responded with an 11-2 spurt to take a 24-19 lead at 5:45. Mincey broke up the run with the next three points before the teams alternated points the rest of the way, as the River Hawks were within five, 34-29, heading into the break.
 
Mincey got the second started with a second-chance bucket, and although Maine maintained at least a three-point edge while the teams continued to trade buckets, Brooks threw down two massive dunks to keep the River Hawks within striking distance. However, the Black Bears put together an 11-4 run to extend the margin to 53-43 with 11:38 left to go.
 
Brooks retaliated with an and-1, and two minutes later, the big man and Mincey combined for five points in a row to make it 57-51 at 8:34. The home team scored nine of the next 11 points, but the River Hawks continued to grind with consecutive buckets from fifth year Anthony Blunt (Glen Dale, Md.) and a dunk from Brooks sparking a stretch of nine unanswered for the River Hawks. Blunt capped off that run with a shot-clock beater, but Maine held on with six of the final eight points, securing the 72-64 outcome.