BOX SCORE
WEST HARTFORD, CT - The University of Hartford men's basketball team dropped a 70-64 decision to La Salle University on Saturday afternoon at Chase Arena at Reich Family Pavilion.
Hartford (3-6 overall) shot 43 percent in the game but made only 6-of-23 attempts from three-point range. Sophomore Morgan Sabia netted a season-high 17 points on 7-of-14 shooting to lead the Hawks.
La Salle (4-3 overall), which shot 51 percent from the floor, used its size advantage to post a 37-25 edge on the glass. The Explorers also worked their way to the free throw line 26 times for 18 points. Kimmani Barrett, Rodney Green and Ruben Guillandeaux each finished with 14 points to lead a balanced La Salle attack.
Hartford led by as many as eight points in the first half. The Hawks led 20-12 with 8:30 to play following a layup by senior Jaret von Rosenberg, who scored 12 of his 16 points in the opening stanza. La Salle closed the gap in the final minutes of the half and took a 31-29 lead with 1:02 remaining on a jumper by Guillandeaux. Neither team scored in the final minute and the Explorers, paced by 10 points from Guillandeaux, took a two-point lead into the locker room.
La Salle never gave up the lead in the second half and opened up a double-digit lead when Barrett drained a three-pointer to make it 52-42 with 8:48 to go. The Hawks fought back to cut the deficit to seven at 60-53, but Green answered with an old-fashioned three-point play to put the Explorers back up 10 with 2:27 to play.
La Salle went 8-of-11 from the line in the final 2:27 to seal the victory. Yves Mekongo Mbala (11 points) and Vernon Goodridge (10 points) also scored in double figures for the Explorers. Goodridge, Green, Mekongo Mbala and Jerrell Williams all chipped in with six rebounds apiece.
Hartford turned the ball over only three times in the second half and eight times in the contest. Von Rosenberg dished out a game-high five assists and didn't turn the ball over in 38 minutes of action. Junior Joe Zeglinski added 12 points, all from behind the three-point arc.
Hartford returns to action at Brown University on Tuesday, December 9 at 7 p.m.
