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WEST HARTFORD, Conn.  – Senior forward Mark Nwakamma put together his third double-double of conference play this season, but it wasn't enough for the University of Hartford men's basketball team to pull out a win against the Maine Black Bears on Sunday at Chase Family Arena. Dropping a 70-61 decision for their second-straight home loss, the Hawks dip to 11-9 on the season and 4-3 in America East action.

Maine (2-18 overall) shot 60.9-percent from the field (14-of-23) in the second half, including 60.0-percent (6-of-10) from three-point land, to score its first league win of the season and improve to 1-6. Scoring 17 points in the final stanza on a 5-of-8 effort from the floor that included a trio of three-pointers, freshman guard Kevin Little finished the game with a 25 points to lead all scorers. On the afternoon, he shot 50.0-percent, sinking 5-of-10 from long range.

Trailing for most of the game, including a three-point deficit (29-26) at the half, Nwakamma stole the show for Hartford in the second half, helping keep the home team in the game. With eight first-half points, the veteran forward netted 14 of his team's first 18 points of the stanza to push the Hawks back in front for the first time since the scoreboard read 14-14 midway through the first. After assisting on a Corban Wroe layup that knotted up the score at 42-all, his baseline jumper from 10-feet out made it a 44-42 Hawks' advantage with just over 11 minutes remaining.

The score swung back-and-forth four more times before the Black Bears took the lead for good at 56-53 thanks to a 5-0 spurt that featured a layup from Little and a deep three-pointer from Zarko Valjarevic. Following a jumper from Taylor Dyson at the 5:30 mark that brought Hartford within a point at 56-55, Maine put the pedal to the metal, outscoring Hartford 14-6 to take the win. Valjarevic helped create that separation, contributing two more threes during that stretch to finish with 14 points.

Hartford returns to action with a mid-week tilt at Stony Brook on Wednesday at 7 p.m. The game will be broadcasted on ESPN3.

THE TURNING POINT:
After spotting four points to Maine to open up the second half, Hartford erased a seven-point deficit by wheeling off an 18-9 run to go up, 44-42, in a seven-minute spurt that featured 14 points from senior Mark Nwakamma. Following four makes from the free throw line for the Black Bears that made it a 46-44 edge for the visiting team, the Hawks went off for back-to-back three-pointers from Taylor Dyson and Corban Wroe to go up by four points (50-46) with 8:47 to go. Maine stopped that momentum, though, as it outscored Hartford, 25-11, in the final part of the stanza, knocking down five three-pointers during that span to seal the game.

HOW IT HAPPENED: 

·         Despite missing its first five shots to start the game, Hartford rallied to take a 9-7 edge over the Black Bears thanks to a 7-0 run that featured back-to-back buckets from Nwakamma followed by a three-pointer by Justin Graham.

·         The score shifted back-and-forth two more times before the Black Bears scored five unanswered points to take an 18-14 advantage. Maine would hold on to that lead until halftime, but only held a three-point edge at 26-23 despite leading by as many as eight points in the closing minutes of the period.

·         Spotting four quick points to the Black Bears over the first 97 seconds to put them up, 33-26, Nwakamma heated up and shredded Maine's defense. Over the next seven minutes, the Hawks outscored the Black Bears,18-9, thanks to 14 points from Nwakamma. After that stretch, Hartford was on top of Maine, 44-42, with 11:08 remaining.

·         The lead swung back-and-forth again, with back-to-back three-pointers from Taylor Dyson and Corban Wroe making it a four-point Hartford lead at 50-46 with 8:47 left to play. Following a brief, 5-0 spurt from the Black Bears that made it a one-point edge for the visitors, Wroe knocked down another triple with 7:11 to go to give the Hawks the edge at 53-51.

·         Maine came back again, though, and tied up the game on a Kevin Little layup before a Zarko Valjarevic three-pointer gave his team the lead for good with 5:50 to go. That run sparked a game-ending 19-8 Black Bears' run that sealed the win for the visiting squad. Maine connected on six threes in the second half, including three in the final five minutes. 

INSIDE THE NUMBERS: 

·         Senior Mark Nwakamma paced Hartford with 22 points and 11 rebounds for his third double-double this season

·         The forward shot 10-of-19 from the floor, scoring 14 points in the first nine minutes of the second half to keep his team within earshot of the Black Bears

·         The Hawks couldn't get anything to drop from the outside in the first half as a 1-of-11 effort (9.1%) resulted in a 29-26 halftime deficit

·         Maine's shooting from the floor and from three proved to be the dagger for Hartford; the Black Bears shot 51.0-percent overall, including 60.9-percent in the second half, and 47.6-percent from three-point land

·         Finishing the game at 38.5-percent from the floor (25-of-65), the Hawks made just 5-of-32 from three for a season-low 15.6-percent effort

·         Hartford matched a season-best in turnovers against Maine, throwing the ball away just six times 

NEWS AND NOTES: 

·         Senior Mark Nwakamma led Hartford with 22 points and 11 rebounds for his third double-double of the season

·         Each of Nwakamma's three double-doubles this season have come within America East Conference play; he is the team's active leader in the category with 11 on his career

·         Sunday's 20-plus-point effort from Nwakamma is the

·         Nwakamma needs just 11 more points to reach the 1,500-point plateau; he is 71 points away from moving into fourth-place on Hartford's Division I scoring list

·         Justin Graham scored in double figures for the third time in five games, finishing with 11 points on a 5-of-7 effort

·         Freshman Jack Hobbs grabbed a career-high eight rebounds for the Hawks in the loss

·         Hartford entered the game having won eight of its last nine against Maine

·         The Hawks' last home loss to the Black Bears came in 2010 when it fell, 77-69 

UP NEXT:
The Hawks head to Stony Brook for a mid-week tilt against the Seawolves on Wednesday. In a game that will be aired on ESPN3, the Hawks and Seawolves are scheduled for a 7 p.m. tip from the new Island Federal Credit Union Arena. Fans can also catch all of the action on the airwaves on WDRC1360AM (www.talkofconnecticut.com) as Jeff Dooley and Randy LaVigne have the call, starting with the pregame show at 6:30 p.m.