MILTON, MASS – A 20-2 run that spanned the end of the first half and the beginning of the second half helped the University of Hartford men's basketball team to the 62-54 victory over Commonwealth Coast Conference foe Curry College Saturday inside the Dr. Eleanor Meyerhoff Katz Gymnasium. 
 

Getting out in transition and scoring off of turnovers were the catalysts of the game-deciding run. Hartford forced six turnovers, leading to 13 second-chance points, in building the 13-point lead. In all, the Hawks forced 20 turnovers which led to 28 second-chance points. 
 

Hartford built what was seemingly a comfortable lead, but the home-standing Colonels had one last gasp. With the Hawks leading by 12 with a little over seven minutes remaining, Curry scored nine of the next 11 points to pull to within five and force a Hartford timeout. CC had multiple chances to get closer, but graduate guard Trayon Rumley connected on a lay-up to stem the tide. 
 

Rumley hit three of four from the foul line and freshman Kaosi Chijioke hit both of his attempts from the free-throw line to seal the victory. 
 

The Hawks got off to a slow start as Curry scored the first seven points and Hartford didn't hit its first basket until six minutes into the game. Thanks to quality defense, the Hawks maintained close contact with the Colonels.
 

Curry kept the advantage and led by five when Hartford kicked off the aforementioned run by scoring the final eight points of the first half. Back-to-back steals leading to buckets by freshman Stephen Akwiwu were the catalyst to the run that ended the first half to enable Hartford to claim the halftime lead. 
 

Akwiwu finished with 21 points on 10-of-14 shooting with four rebounds, while Rumley added 15 points, four rebounds, and three assists. Freshman Kaosi Chijioke finished with a game-high 14 rebounds. Senior Beloulisah Oranye grabbed 10 rebounds as well. 
 

INSIDE THE BOX & NOTES

• Hartford used its eighth different starting lineup of the season with freshman Jaylen Brown earning his first start of the season and freshman Zach Skinner getting his second start. 
• The Hawks held Curry to a season-low 54 points. 
• Akwiwu has scored in double figures in 10 games this season and eclipsed the 20-point barrier for the fifth time this season. 
• Chijioke has pulled down double-digit rebounds in back-to-back games and four games total. 
• Oranye now has pulled down at least 10 rebounds in four games. 

WHAT'S NEXT

Hartford (6-9 overall, 4-4 CCC opponents) returns home to host Suffolk 7:30 p.m. Wednesday.