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WEST HARTFORD, Conn. – An offensive surge midway through the second half helped the University of Hartford men's basketball team pull away from Holy Cross and score a 90-78 win on Saturday at the Chase Family Arena. Ending a five-game skid, the Hawks improve to 3-7 while the Crusaders, which came into the contest riding a three-game win-streak, drop to 5-4.

For the first time in over 10 years, six Hawks scored in double figures for Hartford, which set a season-high in points. Junior Yolonzo Moore II paced all scorers with 21 points to help the team reach the 90-point mark, a feat that has not been accomplished since a home game against Lafayette on Dec. 4, 2008.

Not far behind Moore in the scoring column was junior Mark Nwakamma, who registered 19 points. Sophomore Evan Cooper added 14 points while junior Corban Wroe rounded out the scoring for the starting five with 11 points, a career-high. Off the bench, juniors Nate Sikma and Wes Cole had 15 and 10 points, respectively.

With all six of those Hawk double-digit scorers shooting over the 50 percent clip, Hartford also turned in a season-best effort from the charity stripe (76.9 percent) while dishing out 18 assists, the most this season.

Two weeks after falling to the Crusaders at Mohegan Sun Arena, 80-55, the Hawks put in their best effort of the season, shooting 58.5 percent while committing just 11 turnovers.

A Sikma triple seven minutes in broke a 10-10 tie and provided the Hawks with an advantage they would not relinquish for the remainder of the contest. Leading 39-33 at the intermission behind 10 first half points from Nwakamma and all 14 of Cooper's tallies, Hartford took control and expanded that advantage into double-figures thanks to a Sikma jumper at the 16:53 mark.

Holy Cross didn't go down without a fight, though, as it came back to cut a 12-point Hartford edge down to two. A three-pointer from Malcolm Miller, who led the Crusaders with 18 points, sparked a 10-0 run that made it a 50-48 game with 13:07 left to play.

Moore had 11 of his points during Hartford's game-deciding rally, a stretch in which the Hawks outscored the Crusaders, 22-9, over a seven and a half minutes span. Turning in a hot 8-for-11 shooting performance while forcing three Holy Cross turnovers during that spurt, Nwakamma added seven points to help give the Hawks a commanding 72-57 lead with 5:55 to go.

The Crusaders were hot throughout the game, shooting 61.7 percent from the field, an effort that featured a 70.8 percent clip in the second half.  Despite making five of its eight triples in the final four minutes, Holy Cross wouldn't come any closer than 12 points of Hartford.

Cooper added a career-high seven assists to his effort while Sikma, who played in his second game since returning from an ankle injury, pulled down a team-best seven rebounds and had four assists in 34 minutes.

The Hawks head over the town border to New Britain on Tuesday night for a non-conference clash at Central Connecticut State. The Nutmeg State showdown is set to start at 7 p.m. at Detrick Gymnasium.