North Dartmouth, Mass.-Senior guard Eric Alleyne (Watertown, MA) scored 13 points and recorded nine assists, while senior center Victor Smith (Providence, RI) scored 14 off the bench, but  the Rhode Island College men's basketball team fell, 72-62, to Little East Conference foe UMass Dartmouth on Thursday night at the Tripp Athletic Center.

The Corsairs (10-8, 6-2 LEC) opened an 8-2 lead on a layup by junior center Wale Abraham (Lynn, MA) just 2:21 in to the first half. The Anchormen (13-5, 5-3 LEC) pulled within three, 14-11, on a layup from junior forward Patrick Matthews (Waipahu, HI) with 11:15 remaining in the frame. The teams went back and forth until five straight points from UMD senior guard Jake Laga (Northampton, MA) upped the Corsairs' lead to 10 points, 31-21, with 2:39 left. UMD pushed its lead to 12, but a late basket from Matthews trimmed the deficit down to 10, 35-25, entering the locker room.  

The Corsairs opened the second half by ballooning their lead to 17 points, 56-39, on a layup from junior guard Jordan Rezendes (Onset, MA) with just over 10 minutes to play. The Anchormen weren't finished. They buckled down on defense and used a 22-12 run to cut the UMD lead to seven, 68-61, on a layup from Smith with 1:27 remaining.  The Corsairs hit their free throws down the stretch to finish out the 10-point victory.  

Sophomore guard Jon Robinson (Chatham, MA) led five Corsairs in double figures with 20 points. Rezendes led the team with 12 rebounds, while also registering two steals. UMD shot 46.2 percent (24-for-52) from the field, 33.3 percent (6-for-18) from three-point range and 64.3 percent (18-for-28) from the free throw line.

RIC finished the game shooting 39.7 percent (25-for-63) from the field and 55.0 percent (11-for-20) from the charity stripe. They struggled from downtown, being held to just 6.2 percent (1-for-16).

In upcoming action, Rhode Island College will continue Little East Conference action at home against UMass Boston on Saturday, Jan. 31 (3 p.m.).