WILLIMANTIC, Conn. – It's uncertain which team of Huskies played in the first half of Saturday's Little East Conference men's basketball game at Francis E. Geissler Gymnasium against Eastern Connecticut State University -- the University of Southern Maine Huskies or the University of Connecticut Huskies.

In search of its first LEC regular-season sweep of the Warriors in 16 years, the USM Huskies shot 83 percent in the first half –which included 7-of-8 marksmanship beyond the arc – and went on to a 77-62 victory Saturday that had followed a 22-point victory over Eastern in early December at the Warren Hill Gymnasium.

Eastern (4-16, 1-10 LEC) started off strong by scoring the first two baskets of the game but then Chance Dixon started getting hot, the senior guard converting his first eight shot of the game and 9-of-11 in the game (4-of-4 from distance) en route to a game-tying 24 points which matched Eastern sophomore forward Jalen Hamblin (West Hartford).  Dixon, who had scored 14 points on 6-of-10 shooting in the first victory over the Warriors, only turned the ball over one time in 31 minutes.

With its seventh loss in the last eight games, Eastern drops into sole possession of last place in the conference following Plymouth State University's (2-9 LEC) 62-59 home upset win against the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth (7-3 LEC). The top six teams qualify for next month's LEC tournament. With its fourth LEC road win in its last five tries, Southern Maine (10-9, 6-5 LEC) moves into a share of fourth place (the No. 3 and No. 4 seeds earn first-round tournament home games) with Rhode Island College, which was upended by homestanding University of Massachusetts Boston, 64-50, Saturday.

What helped Southern Maine create separation against Eastern was taking advantage of turnovers. The Huskies scored 21 points off  turnovers in the first half, when they ended the first half on a 24-7 run that trashed a two-point lead and gave them a 15-point, 42-27 halftime  lead.   While Eastern was able to keep Brady Saunders (game-high 23 points in the first game against Eastern) in check (six first-half points and six turnovers), Dixon did not miss a first-half field goal or free throw and scored 13 of those points, with Cody Hawes adding nine (3-of-4 FG) and Tommy Whelan (4-of-6) eight.

Hamblin was a positive for the Warriors in the first half when he dropped in 15 of his 24 points (most since Nov. 29) on 7-of-9 shooting from the floor. He was 11-of-13 from the floor in the game to power Easgtern's 48 percent marksmanship, but the team's 6-foot-7 inch season rebounding leader (8.2 per game) managed only one in 37 minutes.

A big part of the Huskies' success was Hawes who followed his five-point performance earlier this year against Eastern with  23 this time on 8 of 11 shooting and 2 of 3 from long range. Whelan scored in double figures against Eastern for the second time this year with 13 points on 6 of 9 shooting. 

Down by those 15 points at halftime, the Warriors matched USM's 35 points in the second half, thanks to the positive contributions of a number of players. In a starting role, first-year guard  Jeremiah Graham (Jacksonville,FL) had eight points and three rebounds in the game. Eastern's bench had 15 points in the second half thanks to junior transfer Ty Calloway (Enfield) who had eight points on 3-of-5 shooting in nine second-half minutes, senior transfer Cam Stiepock (Glastonbury), who had five points on 2-of-3 shooting in ten second-half minutes, and sophomore transfer Michael Carothers (Queens, NY) who had two points, twp rebounds and an assist in nine minutes.

With two minutes left in the game, the Warriors cut a 22-point deficit to eight, but timely free throws from Hawes and a game-sealing three pointer from Saunders was enough to put the final margin at 15 points.

The LEC leader in team field goal percentage, USM finished at a blistering 70 percent from the floor in the game.

The Warriors welcome LEC foe Western Connecticut State University to Geissler Gym Wednesday at 5 p.m. The Wolves (16-4, 9-2 LEC), who defeated the Warriors, 79-58, at Feldman Arena in Danbury nearly four weeks ago are coming off Saturday's 97-63 road win over Castleton.  WestConn is in second place in the LEC, 1 ½ games behind unbeaten leader Keene State College.