BALTIMORE ? In the first meeting between the America East's two top-scoring teams, it was UMBC that pulled out an 86-85 victory against the University of Hartford men's basketball team on Wednesday night at RAC Arena.
In a back-and-forth game that featured 16 ties and 27 lead changes, it was no surprise that the team with the last possession would come away with the win. After sophomore Joe Zeglinski hit a jumper in the lane to give the Hawks an 85-83 lead with 30 seconds to play, UMBC's Brian Hodges hit a game-winning three-pointer at the buzzer.
“I think they definitely got it to the right guy for the last shot,” said head coach Dan Leibovitz. “You got the feeling that it was one of those games where the team who had the ball last would win. Both teams shot the ball well, but we didn't defend as well as I would have liked.”
UMBC (12-6 overall, 4-1 AE) handed Hartford (8-10, 2-1 AE) its first conference loss of the season. The Retrievers shot 46 percent for the game and made 14-of-25 from three-point range. The Hawks shot a season-high 55 percent from the floor and committed a season-low nine turnovers.
Hodges and junior Warren McLendon were named America East Players of the Game. Hodges scored 17 of his team-high 24 points in the second half and was 6-of-9 from behind the arc. McLendon scored 21 of his season-high 29 points in the second half and added 10 rebounds for his second double-double of the season.
The lead changed hands five times in the final three minutes. McLendon gave the Hawks a 79-78 lead with a pair of free throws with 2:39 to play, but UMBC came right back with a pair of freebies from Darryl Proctor to go back in front. McLendon then scored on a jump hook in the lane to put the Hawks back up by a point with 2:00 to go, and 36 seconds later he added two more from the stripe to pump the lead to 83-80.
UMBC tied the game with a three-pointer by Ray Barbosa?his only points of the second half?with 1:06 remaining. Hartford went back into the post for McLendon on the next possession, but he was blocked on his move to the basket. Freshman Anthony Minor tied up a UMBC defender on the rebound and was able to get a jump ball call that gave possession back to the Hawks.
Hartford went right to Zeglinski, who finished with a career-high 25 points, on its final play. Zeglinski used a screen at the top of the key to shake off his defender and then pulled up at the left elbow to drain the go-ahead basket with 30 seconds to play.
After a series of timeouts from each team, UMBC inbounded the ball for its final possession but couldn't get an open look. The Retrievers were in disarray as the clock ticked down, though a quick timeout with 3.6 seconds remaining saved the final play. The ensuing inbounds pass went to Hodges, who faked a pass before stepping back to bury the game-winner. He shot the ball over two Hartford defenders as time expired.
“On some plays we didn't play good defense on him, and on some we did, and he just made shots,” said Leibovitz of Hodges. “He made some pretty spectacular shots. On the final play, we had our best defender on him, but you can't draw up a defense to stop a guy from taking a step-back three. He's a heck of a player.”
Neither team led by more than four points in the first half until the Hawks ripped off a 12-1 run to take their biggest lead at 38-31 with 1:49 remaining in the half. Zeglinski hit a pair of three-pointers during the stretch while McLendon capped the run with consecutive baskets in the paint.
UMBC closed the half with seven of the final 10 points, though Hartford took a 41-38 lead into the locker room. The 41 points was the second-highest first-half output for the Hawks all season.
Freshman Morgan Sabia also finished in double figures for the Hawks with 16 points. Junior Michael Turner dished out a career-high 10 assists; the last Hartford player with 10 or more assists was Keyon Smith, who had 11 against New Hampshire during the 1999-00 season.
Hartford will look to rebound against the University at Albany on Saturday, January 19 at Chase Arena at Reich Family Pavilion. Tip-off is scheduled for 7 p.m.
