Jan 14, 2016
BIDDEFORD, Maine -- The University of New England men's basketball team never trailed in the 2nd half but needed a pair of free throws from Matt Lettick in the final seconds to put away an 81-76 Commonwealth Coast Conference (CCC) decision over Eastern Nazarene College on Thursday evening (Jan. 14) at the Harold Alfond Forum.
Big Blue led by 10 (76-66) after a dunk by Lettick with 2:47 left, but timely baskets kept the Lions within striking distance until a three-pointer from Justin Wagner made it 79-76 with 16 seconds remaining. Following a foul and two missed freebies by the Nor'easters, ENC had a short jumper roll off the front of the rim into Lettick's hands.
UNE (9-5, 4-3 CCC) came out of the halftime break with a 39-34 edge, and from a tie at 43-all, used a span of 2:52 to rattle off a 13-4 run that made it 56-47 with under 12 minutes on the clock.
It wasn't long before Eastern Nazarene (9-5, 3-4 CCC) turned in a 7-0 spurt to knot things at 59-59, and UNE's Devin Thompson and Justin Wagner exchanged treys for another tie at 62-all. After a few free throws left the Nor'easters up one (64-63 at the 6:03 mark), a jumper by Lettick started a 12-3 run in 2:54 that established the only double digit spread of the contest.
Thompson guided the winners with 23 points, including a 4-of-6 effort from deep and 17 in the closing frame. Lettick added 11 points off the bench, and reserve Daron Hoges, Jr. contributed eight points and five rebounds. Drew Coveney did a bit of everything to finish with 10 points, seven boards, four assists, two steals, and two blocks. CJ Autry pulled down a team-high nine caroms for UNE, which shot 48 percent from the field and was plus-9 at the charity stripe.
The Lions were paced by Jaylen Owens with 17 points, while Justin Wagner and Jeremy Wagner combined for eight triples and 24 points. Lequan Gomes nearly registered a double-double after intermission, and totaled 13 points to go with a game-best 14 rebounds.
First-period action consisted of eight ties and five lead-changes -- ENC was only ahead for brief moments of one or two, and UNE could not extend its advantage past five (13-8, 21-16, 39-34).
The result ends a six-game skid for the Nor'easters against Eastern Nazarene, which lost for a fifth straight outing after nine wins to open the season.
Big Blue welcomes in Roger Williams University (4-3 CCC) on Saturday for a 3 p.m. match.