WILLIMANTIC, Conn. – Since junior Meikyle Murray (Bronx, NY) joined Eastern Connecticut State University men's basketball as a transfer in January, the 6'3" guard has been a force to be reckon with on both sides of the ball. Against UMass Boston on Tuesday, it was more of the same for the kid from the Bronx. Scoring nine of his 21 points in the final six minutes of the game, Murray helped lead the Warriors (18-7), who shot 52 percent from the floor, to a nail-biting 76-73 victory in the first round of the Little East Conference Tournament over the Beacons (11-14) in Geissler Gymnasium.
After the teams exchanged the lead four times in a span of less than two minutes, Murray's layup with 7:56 remaining gave Eastern a 54-53 edge before a jumper by junior guard Jalen Williams (Simsbury) and layup by junior forward Rakesh Tibby (East Hartford) extended the lead to five points, 58-53. The 7-0 run by the Warriors was broken up by junior guard Tommy Burris who nailed a three off a pass from senior guard Charlie Mitchell to cut the UMass Boston deficit down to two, 58-56.
That was when Murray stole the show on the offensive end for Eastern to help them put the game away. Responding to the three by Burris, the junior guard hit a three of his own and then following a layup by junior forward Malik Lorquet, found his way to the foul line for a pair of free throws to help the Warriors keep pace.
With the Beacons threatening to steal the momentum after a 4-0 run brought them within one, 63-62, Murray responded once again with a three to help Eastern regain their composure and take control of the game once and for all. Williams would knock down a pair of free throws and Tibby added in a pair of baskets following a Charlie Mitchell jumper to complete a 9-2 run for the Warriors who went ahead, 72-64, with a minute remaining.
UMass Boston had one final push in them, cutting their deficit in half with 19 seconds left after baskets by Lorquet and Charlie Mitchell brought them back with four, 72-68. Making 4-of-6 free throw attempts in the next six seconds, around a three by Charles Mitchell who missed an and-one opportunity and two free throws by Charlie Mitchell, Williams and Murray helped shut the door on the final charge by the Beacons who were unable to get a shot off down three, 76-73, with 0.3 seconds left in regulation.
The win propelled two-seeded Eastern to the Little East Conference Tournament Semifinals to face off against three-seeded Keene State College (18-6), who defeated six-seeded Rhode Island College (14-12), 73-70, on Thursday night inside Geissler Gymnasium on Thursday night. The Warriors are 13-1 at home this season.
Leading by as many as 11 points with 2:13 left in the first half, Eastern controlled much of the opening 20 minutes after the Little East Conference squads exchanged the lead nine times in the first 11 minutes of play. After taking an 18-17 lead with 8:58 remaining, the Warriors never looked back as they went on to score 10 of the next 14 points in the half to open up their first and largest double-digit lead of the evening. In just 18:11 of play, sophomore guard Max Lee (Norwich) recorded his third double-double of the season and second consecutive after hauling in his 10th rebound to go along with 10 points en route to a 10-point, 12 rebound evening. Heading into the locker room, Eastern held an eight-point lead, 36-28, with 20 minutes standing between them and the LEC Semifinals.
Opening up the second half, the Warriors would go in front by double-digits three more times in the first two minutes of play before the Beacons came roaring back. A 10-2 burst over the next three minutes saw UMass Boston climb back to within two, 45-43, with 15:11 remaining before a pair before the Beacons took their first lead since the 9:56 mark of the first half on a Lorquet layup with 13:30 left, 48-47. That would be the beginning of the lead exchanges before Murray's stretch run to power Eastern across the finish line to victory.
After scoring just five first half points, Jalen Williams erupted for 15 second half points, knocking down two of his four shots from three, going 4-for-7 from the floor and hitting 5-of-6 free throws down the stretch to finish the game with 20 points on 6-of-13 shootings (3-for-6 three, 5-for-6 free throw).
Meikyle Murray finished with 21 points, seven assists, six rebounds, and three game-changing blocks while going 6-for-13 from the field and 7-for-8 from the charity stripe.
Charles Mitchell led UMass Boston with 24 points and nine rebounds on 10-of-23 shooting. Close behind him was Malik Lorquet who recorded a double-double with 18 points on 7-of-13 shooting and 11 rebounds.
During the regular season, the Warriors split the home-and-home series against Keene State, losing by 15 points on the road before winning by three points at home nine days later. The difference between the two matchups was the absence of senior center James Anozie for the Owls. Anozie put up 14 points and grabbed six rebounds in Keene State's double-digit win at home versus Eastern before missing the matchup at Geissler Gymnasium the next week. The Warriors were led by Jalen Williams and senior guard Tyreice Woods (Hartford) who averaged 14 points and 13.5 points per game respectively across those two matchups.