Box Score BRIDGEPORT, Conn. – Despite game-highs of 22 and 21 points from juniors Yolonzo Moore II and Mark Nwakamma, the University of Hartford men's basketball team came up short in its season opener against Quinnipiac, 82-77, in the annual Connecticut 6 Classic on Saturday afternoon.

Falling to 0-1 on the young season, Hartford controlled the first half, building an 11-point advantage before the halftime break. Seeing that lead quickly slip away in the second, the Hawks battled back from 15-down to come within one point of the Bobcats with 18 seconds left on the clock.

Following a pair of Quinnipiac free throws, the Hawks had a chance to match the Bobcats' 80 points with the final seconds winding off the clock. Moore, who had just converted on an old-fashioned three-point play, stepped back from the top of the key with a three pointer, but that attempt was blocked with five seconds remaining.

Earning the starting nod, the fourth of his career, senior Oren Faulk went 4-for-7 from the floor for eight points, including six-straight Hawk points that helped fuel Hartford's second-half comeback bid. Pulling down a career-best five rebounds, he joined Nwakamma as the team's leader in that category.

Fifteen of Moore's game-high 22 points were netted in the first half, a 20-minute stretch that saw the Hawks shoot 54.8 percent (17-for-31) with a conversion rate of 45.5 percent (5-for-11) from behind the arc.

That hot shooting led to the Hawks building an early double digit lead. A 10-0 run, sparked and capped by a pair of threes from Moore, provided Hartford with a 20-9 lead with 11:54 left in the first. That lead grew to as many as 13 points thanks to a Taylor Dyson three, the Hawks' third of the stanza, with 8:02 left.

Quinnipiac managed to bring that deficit down to single digits four times in the first half, but on each occasion, the Hawks had an answer for every run to maintain their cushion. Holding the Bobcats field goal-less for a five minute stretch, Hartford was able to hold on for a 42-31 lead at the half.

Things changed quickly for Hartford, though, in the second half. Quinnipiac came out of the gates firing and Hartford's hot first half shooting went cold.

In the first 14 minutes of the final stanza, the Hawks converted on just two field goals and fell behind by 15 points with just over six minutes left to play. The Hawks regrouped and regained momentum in the final minutes, scoring 10 of the next 12 points to trim that 15-point deficit down to seven.

Trailing by six with 67 seconds left, Moore converted on two shots from the charity stripe to put his team within four points. That deficit would be trimmed to just a single point with 44 seconds left thanks to rookie Justin Graham.

Graham's first career points couldn't have come at a more opportune time. In the full-court press, the rookie swiped the ball from Quinnipiac's Shaq Shannon in the backcourt. Going the distance and finishing on the and-one, Graham made it a one-point game. The Hawks would come up short in completing the comeback as the Bobcats converted on their final two free throws to lock up the game.

Down the stretch, the Bobcats made their last seven free throws over the final 38 seconds. For the game, Quinnipiac went to the line 48 times, including 35 trips in the second half, and chased-in on 30 points from the charity stripes. The two teams were whistled for 64 fouls.

Pacing the Bobcats was Ike Azotam, who went 6-for-11 from the floor and 8-for-13 from the free throw line to finish with 20 points. He added 13 rebounds to compile the double-double.

Hartford returns to the hardwood on Tuesday, November 12 as it flies south to the Sunshine State for a morning matchup at Florida Gulf Coast, an NCAA Tournament contender from one year ago. Part of ESPN's Tipoff Marathon, the first-time meeting between the Hawks and Eagles will take place at 7 a.m. on ESPN2.