BALTIMORE, Md. — UMBC held the Hartford men's basketball team to 22 points in the second half to take a 57-49 decision inside UMBC Event Center on Sunday. The Hawks, who settled for the series split with the Retrievers after taking a 70-63 decision in Saturday's game, dip to 9-6 overall and 6-4 in the America East.
 
Hartford senior Austin Williams led all scorers with 16 points, while R.J. Eytle-Rock netted 14 points to lead three Retrievers in double figures. UMBC (10-3 overall) improves to 6-2 in league play with the victory. 
 
UMBC 57, HARTFORD 49
The Hawks, who were plagued by turnovers early, settled down in what proved to be a tightly contested first half between the two sides. After 10 lead changes resulted in a 22-21 UMBC edge with 4:48 left, sophomore PJ Henry sparked a 6-0 spurt that put Hartford in front, 27-22. Eytle-Rock ended the run with a three — the first of just two makes from long range for the Retrievers on the afternoon — before Keondre Kennedy trimmed the Hawks' advantage down to one (27-26) at the break on a layup with less than a second left. 
 
UMBC's run stretched into the second half. Scoring the first six points of the stanza, the Retrievers pushed ahead, 32-27, at the 16:55 mark with 10-unanswered points. Junior Hunter Marks drilled a three at the 15:18 mark to ended Hartford's scoring drought, which dated back to the 2:24 mark of the first half. That triple sparked an 8-3 rally that put Hartford back in front, 37-36, on a three from grad student Traci Carter with 11:35 left. 
 
The lead was short-lived, though, as a 3-for-4 effort from the line by Eytle-Rock in UMBC's next two possessions made it a 39-37 Retrievers' edge. Less than one minute later, Carter picked up his fifth foul of the game, and UMBC would control the game from there.
 
Despite remaining within arms length of the Retrievers, the Hawks were unable to overcome the deficit. Trailing by six inside the final two minutes, Henry made a pair of free throws to pull Hartford within four (50-46), but UMBC sealed the game by making 7-of-8 from the line.
 
INSIDE THE BOX & NOTES

• Williams went the distance for the third straight outing, playing all possible 120 minutes for Hartford since last Sunday's win at UMass Lowell
• Leading the team in scoring for the third time in as many outings, Williams added nine rebounds, three assists and a steal 
• All eight players who checked in for the Hawks recorded at least one made field goal
• UMBC, which committed just even turnovers, struggled from behind the arc, going 2-for-21 for 10-percent 
• The Retrievers capitalized from the free-throw line, going 15-for-20
• Kennedy (10 points) and Dimitrije Spasojevic (10) rounded out UMBC's top scorers
• With the split, the all-time series between Hartford and UMBC remains tied at 20-20

 
NEXT ON TAP
The Hawks return home for their next four games. Kicking off the homestand is a two-game set with America East preseason favorite Vermont next Saturday (5 p.m.) and Sunday (3 p.m.).