BOONE, N.C. — The Hartford men's basketball team could never get over the hump on Monday, as it dropped a 69-59 decision to Sun Belt Conference preseason favorite App State inside Holmes Convocation Center. Senior Austin Williams scored a season-high 19 points for the Hawks, who fall to 0-6.
 
Michael Eads Jr. shot 80 percent from the field for the Mountaineers to lead all players with 20 points. With the win, App State moves to 4-4 on the season.
 
APP STATE 69, HARTFORD 59
Despite Williams opening the game on a tear by scoring each of Hartford's first seven points — and 10 of his team's first 13 points — the Hawks found themselves in a 15-7 hole with 11:27 left in the first. The senior's second three of the night with 10:16 left helped the Hawks cut that deficit in half, but three straight triples from Eads allowed App State to push the lead to 26-15 with 7:36 to go. 
 
Scoring 13 points off Hartford's nine first-half  turnovers, the Mountaineers, who shot 52 percent from the field and 40 percent from three, took a 38-23 lead into the halftime break.
 
Hartford came out of intermission strong, scoring the first six points to bring the deficit down to single digits at 38-29. The Hawks continued to make things interesting, but despite pulling within single digits five more times, including an eight-point spread with 7:22 left, they could never get over the hump. Holding Hartford scoreless for nearly five minutes, App State would use a 9-0 run to take its largest lead of the game at 17 (64-47) and ultimately seal the win with 3:04 left. 
 
INSIDE THE BOX & NOTES

• For the fourth time this season, Hartford was down two starters (graduate student Dejuan Clayton, senior Jared Kimbrough)
• Williams, who accounted for seven of the Hawks' 10 makes from the free-throw line, recorded a season-best 19 points for his fourth straight game in double figures
• He added three steals and six assists to lead Hartford in both categories
• Junior Moses Flowers had 10 points and a game-high 10 boards for his second double-double of the season
• For the second straight game, sophomore Briggs McClain registered a career high in scoring, improving his mark from 12 points against Merrimack to 14 on Monday
• Forcing 17 Hawks' miscues, the Mountaineers scored 22 of their points off turnovers
• After a 6-of-15 start (40.0%), Hartford held App State to a 1-of-12 clip (8.3%) from behind the arc in the second half
• Eads had a hot hand for the Mountaineers, going 8-of-10 from the field and 4-of-6 from downtown
• The Hawks fall to 0-2 against App State, previously dropping the inaugural meeting in West Hartford in 2016

 
NEXT ON TAP
The turnaround is quick for the Hawks, as they head to Rock Hill, S.C. to take on Winthrop on Wednesday. Tipoff from Winthrop Coliseum is set for 7:30 p.m.  For an inside look at Hartford men's basketball, stay with HartfordHawks.com for updates and follow the team on social media: Twitter | Instagram