BOX SCORE
PHOTO GALLERY
WEST HARTFORD, Conn. – The University of Hartford men's basketball team battled through 40 minutes but did not have the power to finish the game off as it suffered a heartbreaking 74-69 loss to in-state foe Yale on Tuesday evening at the Chase Family Pavilion at the Reich Family Pavilion. The Hawks claimed a six point lead at the half and held on to it through 13 minutes in the second period however after it was the Bulldogs who snapped the 10th and final tie of the game and held on to the advantage for the remainder of the game to secure the win.
Hartford falls to 0-7 while Yale improves to 4-2.
Rookie Wes Cole and veteran Genesis Maciel handed in season-high performances for the Hawks with 16 points each. Cole came off the bench to finish 6-of-14 from the floor including 4-of-9 from behind the arc to notch his third double figure performance this year. Nate Sikma led the way on the boards with five. The Bulldogs saw three players reach twin figures led by Austin Morgan's 26 points. Reggie Willhite pulled down a game-best nine rebounds to go along with 19 points for Yale.
Hartford entered the second half with a six point lead at 35-29 thanks to an 8-0 run that closed out the opening stanza. After extending that advantage to as much as nine points, the Hawks held on but were plagued with early foul trouble that led to several made free throws for the Bulldogs and a shift in momentum in favor of the visitors. At the 7:36 mark, Yale tied the game with a trey by Austin and went ahead of the Hawks for the first time in that half on a pair of free throws by Willhite with 7:03 remaining.
The score changed hands three more times before a lay-up by Willhite erased his team's deficit for good at 67-65 with 4:03 to play. After increasing its lead to four, Willhite again came through at a key moment with a steal and a dunk that pushed Yale's lead to six with 1:54 on the clock.
In the opening stanza, the lead seesawed several times with neither team able to craft a run to break open the game. Sikma kept the Hawks in the game with seven first half points, including 2-of-3 from the floor with a three, to go along with three rebounds and four assists. After six deadlocks and as many lead changes, the Hawks picked up the intensity over the final 2:40 of the stanza and reeled off an 8-0 run to shift the lead in favor of Hartford at the halftime intermission.
Andres Torres sparked the Hawks' run with a steal on the defensive end leading to a fast break bucket while Mark Nwakamma followed suit on the next possession when he picked Isaiah Salafia's pocket and converted the Bulldogs' miscue into a transition dunk on the other end to put his team up, 31-29.
Hartford earned its final four points of the half at the charity stripe as Nwakamma connected on two attempts and Torres' two free throws with two seconds remaining in the period pushed the home team ahead, 35-29.
The Hawks put together their most impressive effort this year on both ends of the floor. From the field, Hartford shot a season-high 50.0% (24-of-48), including a 41.7% clip from three (10-of-24), also a season-high mark. The Hawks also matched their opponents in the rebounds category with 27 each and dished out 16 assists. Yale finished the game connecting on 22-of-43 of its attempts (51.2-percent) from the floor and 7-of-18 (38.9%) from downtown.
Hartford returns to action on Saturday, December 3 when it takes on Central Florida of the Conference USA in Orlando. Tip-off is scheduled for 5:00 p.m. Jeff Dooley and Randy LaVigne will have the call on WDRC-1360 AM.
