HAMDEN, CT ? It was a familiar face in a reborn rivalry that was the difference in the University of Hartford men's basketball team's 85-79, double-overtime loss to Quinnipiac on Sunday at the TD Banknorth Center.
Bryan Geffen, playing in his first game with the Bobcats after transferring from Boston University, scored all of his 19 points in the second half and overtime. He scored five points in the final overtime alone, including a dagger of a three-pointer that gave Quinnipiac (1-0 overall) a six-point lead with 1:23 to play.
Junior Warren McLendon scored a season-high 24 points and added 11 rebounds for his first double-double in a Hartford uniform. Sophomore Joe Zeglinski added 20 points and a career-high seven assists, though the duo combined to shoot just 10-of-19 from the free throw line. Senior Rich Baker also netted a career-high 17 points and shot 5-of-6 from three-point range in the loss.
The Hawks (0-2 overall) led 33-27 at the half and pumped the lead to double digits early in the second stanza. However, after a free throw by McLendon gave Hartford a 47-36 lead with 13:29 to play, Hartford didn't score for the next six minutes as the Bobcats clawed their way back into the game with an 8-0 run.
A pair of free throws from Baker and a dunk by McLendon snapped the streak and gave the Hawks a 51-44 lead with 7:33 to go. Things looked even brighter for Hartford when the Bobcats' leading scorer, DeMario Anderson, picked up his fourth foul and had to take a seat on the bench.
Geffen picked up the slack with Anderson on the bench, canning three treys over the next 3:30 minutes. The final three-pointer of the barrage gave the Bobcats their first lead of the half at 55-52 with 4:28 remaining.
Hartford took back the lead and had a four-point advantage after Zeglinski made a jumper with 1:45 to play. Geffen answered right back with a three on the other end, and after McLendon made a basket in the paint to put the Hawks back up by three, James Feldeine tied the game with a trey with 28 seconds to play.
The Hawks had the final shot and worked the ball down low to McLendon, who lost it in traffic while making his move to the hoop. The Bobcats raced up court but did not get a potential game-winning shot off before the buzzer sounded.
Hartford trailed by three points late in the first overtime before Baker sunk his career-high fifth three-pointer to tie the game with 53 seconds to go. Feldeine attempted a go-ahead three but missed, and both Zeglinski and McLendon had chances to end the game in the closing seconds of the stanza but came up empty.
Quinnipiac outscored Hartford 15-9 in the final overtime, with Casey Cosgrove recording five of his seven points in the final five minutes. The Bobcats missed eight of their final 10 free throws, though it didn't come back to hurt them.
Quinnipiac scored the first five points of the contest, though Hartford quickly answered back and tied the score at 9-9 on a Zeglinski bucket with 15:05 remaining in the half. The teams then traded baskets until the Hawks took control behind a 13-0 run, pulling out to a 23-14 lead on a Baker three-pointer with 7:04 to go. McLendon scored six points in the run, including one of three treys made by Hartford in the spurt.
Quinnipiac played its way back behind Anderson, who scored 14 of the team's 27 points in the first stanza. A jumper by Zeglinski in the final seconds of the half gave the Hawks a 33-27 lead at the break.
Hartford will play its home opener against Sacred Heart University on Wednesday, November 14 at Chase Arena at Reich Family Pavilion. Tip-off is scheduled for 7 p.m.
