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WEST HARTFORD, Conn. - A stingy defense and strong ball-handling proved not enough on Wednesday night as the Hartford men's basketball team fell to Yale, 48-46. The Hawks were led by Morgan Sabia for a second straight game, as the junior knocked down 15 points. Hartford (2-5) forced 12 turnovers while committing just seven themselves, and held the Bulldogs (3-5) to 40% from the floor, but a dunk in the final seconds from Michael Sands proved to be the difference in the closely-contested battle.
The defense was brilliant from the opening tip, as the Hawks held Yale without a point over the game's first eight minutes. Hartford jumped out to a 13-0 lead, but Yale would hit two three-pointers on their way to climbing back into the game with solid defensive pressure of their own.
The Bulldogs were led by Alex Zampier who, despite hitting 15 points, was held five points below his season average.
Freshman Charles White earned the first start of his career and keyed the defensive attack for the Hawks.
"It is going to be hard to force Charles out of the lineup," head coach Dan Leibovitz said after the game. "He is doing everything he has to do. I was very pleased with how he performed."
White finished with a career-high eight points and two assists before fouling out in the game's final seconds.
In a game where points proved hard to come by for both teams, it appeared that Yale may have put the Hawks away when Zampier drained a three with 2:31 to go to put Yale up, 45-39. Hartford had an answer, though, as Joe Zeglinski hit a long bomb of his own to bring the margin back to three. With the Hawks down two and under 20 seconds to play, Zeglinski slashed to the hoop and kissed in a layup to bring the score even. The junior finished with 12 points, and sits just three away from becoming the 14th Hawk in history to reach the 1,200 point plateau.
Sands' hoop with just 1.8 seconds remaining sealed the win, and left Hartford to move on with a three-game losing streak.
There is no rest for the Hawks, as they will travel to Newark, NJ tonight in preparation for a matchup with Big East power Seton Hall tomorrow evening at the Prudential Center. Tip off is scheduled for 7 p.m. Fans can hear the game on the flagship station of Hartford basketball, WDRC-1360. Jeff Dooley and Randy LaVigne will have the call.
