WEST HARTFORD, Conn.  – The University of Hartford men's basketball grinded out a 51-50 victory over Saint Peter's College on Sunday afternoon, improving to 1-1 with the home-opening result. Leading the Hawks was junior Taylor Dyson, who converted on all five of his three-point attempts to finish with 15 points. Hartford will look to make it two-in-a-row when it hosts Dartmouth on Wednesday at 7 p.m.

In front of a home crowd of 1,876 fans at Chase Family Pavilion, Sunday's contest went down to the final possession. With 11 seconds remaining and Hartford leading by three at 51-48, Saint Peter's (0-2) called for timeout with the ball at half court. Quickly closing the gap to just one point on a dunk by Marvin Dominique, the Peacocks forced a turnover in the Hawks' back court, but were unable to get a three at the buzzer to fall.

Prior to the final possession, senior Mark Nwakamma, who scored just six points and saw limited minutes in both halves due to foul trouble, came away with the game-changing play that allowed the Hawks to build their three-point advantage heading into the final stretch. With Hartford leading by one at 49-48 with 39 seconds left on the clock, Dominique forced a Hawk turnover in the back court, but before he had a chance to put up the potential go-ahead points, Nwakamma came away with the steal and drew a foul.

The veteran forward went on to calmly sink a pair of free throws to give Hartford the three-point cushion it would need to hold on for the win.

Marvin finished with a game-best 19 points, pulling down 14 rebounds to record the Peacocks' first double-double of the season.

THE TURNING POINT:
Trailing by three at halftime, a four-point play from Corban Wroe with 12:41 left to play in the second half sparked a 7-0 run that gave Hartford a lead it would not relinquish. The game would be forced in to one final tie as the Peacocks strung together back-to-back buckets to make it a 38-38 game at the 7:23 mark, but junior Taylor Dyson went off for three consecutive three-pointers to provide Hartford with its largest lead of the afternoon (9) at 47-38 with five minutes to go. Hartford never relinquished that advantage down the stretch, despite Saint Peter's pulling within one on two occasions in the final 39 seconds.

INSIDE THE NUMBERS: 

·         Junior Taylor Dyson scored a team-best 15 points, while freshman John Carroll added a nine, a career-high

·         Dyson reached double-figures in scoring for the first time this season on 5-of-6 shooting from the field, a mark that included a perfect 5-of-5 clip from behind the arc

·         Also contributing to the offense were seniors Nate Sikma and Corban Wroe, who each scored eight points

·         Coming off a 22-point outing against Sacred Heart, senior Yolonzo Moore II posted team-best numbers in assists (5) and rebounds (5)

·         Hartford held Saint Peter's to just 15.8-percent shooting from three-point land, as the Peacocks converted on just three of their 19 attempts from long range

·         Taking better care of the ball in the second half with just five turnovers, the Hawks scored 11 points off of15 Saint Peter's turnovers 

NEWS & NOTES: 

·         Taylor Dyson's perfect 5-for-5 effort from downtown marked the second time the junior accomplished the feat in his career. Last season against Dartmouth, he made all five three pointers he attempted to compile a career-high 20 points.

·         Senior Yolonzo Moore II pulled down a team-high five rebounds, including the 300th of his career, while also leading the Hawks with a game-best five assists

·         Freshman John Carroll contributed nine points in the win while seniors Nate Sikma and Corban Wroe chipped in with eight apiece

·         With Sunday's win, Hartford has now scored three-straight wins over Saint Peter's

·         Dating back to last season, Hartford has won its last five games at the Chase Family Arena at the Reich Family Pavilion

NEXT UP:
Hartford remains home for its next home game as it welcomes Ivy League member Dartmouth to the Chase Family Arena for a mid-week matchup. The Hawks and Big Green are scheduled to tip off at 7 p.m. on Wednesday.