BURLINGTON, Vt. – Redshirt-senior John Carroll posted a double-double for the second-straight game, but it wasn't enough for the Hartford men's basketball team, as the Hawks dropped an 81-62 decision to America East preseason favorite Vermont. Entering the contest riding a three-game winning streak, the Hawks (8-9) fall to 1-1 in the league, while the Catamounts (13-4) improve to 3-0 in the America East.
 
Carroll recorded 16 points and 11 rebounds in the defeat, while senior J.R. Lynch also finished in double figures for the Hawks with 14 points. Anthony Lamb registered a double-double for Vermont, leading all players with 21 points and 12 rebounds.
 
VERMONT 81, HARTFORD 62
 
Vermont used an 8-0 run to create a 14-6 advantage with 12:37 remaining until halftime after a back-and-forth start between the league foes. The Hawks pulled within three on a Travis Weatherington triple with 7:51 to go, but the Catamounts scored 15 of the final 20 points of the half to take a 36-23 lead into the intermission.
 
Scoring the first eight points of the second, the Catamounts opened up a 44-23 lead with 17:34 to go. Facing a 50-28 deficit, Hartford managed to whittle the lead down to 17 on a 5-0 spurt sparked by a Carroll three. But the Hawks wouldn't come any closer, as the Catamounts surged to go up by as many as 27 points late in the game. 
 
INSIDE THE BOX AND NOTES

• Lynch registered twin figures for the 14th-straight game, finishing with 14 points.
• Weatherington knocked down three three-pointers to finish with nine points.
• Redshirt-sophomore Nikola Colovic added four points in just two minutes off the bench.
• The Hawks shot 37.7 percent from the field to Vermont's 56.0 percent. Both sides finished 8-of-17 (47.1%) from behind the arc.
• Vermont landed five players in double-figures, as Ernie Davis and Isaiah Moll recorded 16 and 15 points, respectively.

 
NEXT ON TAP
The Hawks return north to face Maine on Wednesday, Jan. 16. Tipoff from the Cross Insurance Center is set for 7 p.m on ESPN+.