NEW LONDON, Conn.  - The Hartford men's basketball team picked up a dramatic road victory on Tuesday night, defeating Mitchell College 84-83 in a back-and forth tense match up. The Hawks continued their winning streak to now three putting them at 5-1 overall.

Rapid Recap:

• Hartford got the game going with steady ball movement on the offensive end as senior Kent Olewiler (York, Pa.) and senior Drew Stack (Madison, N.J.) paced the early scoring. Stack's presence at the arc helped the Hawks control the momentum of this game in the opening minutes. The Mariners generated some good sequences to stall the Hawks' runs, Abdul Mansaray found gaps between the Hawks defense to take back control of this game, bringing them up 15-7 just six minutes into play over Hartford. After several trips to the line and key boards from junior Kyle Winters (Corte Madera, Calif.), the Hawks stayed close to the Mariners as we moved through the first half. Freshman Ben Miller (Milford, Conn.) really stepped up for the Hawks this evening, sinking shots all over the court to bring down the Mariners' lead to just five with 45 seconds to go. Mitchell was able to respond with a quick contested layup to pull out of this first half up 43-36 over Hartford.
• The second half featured an immediate burst as Olewiler scored on the opening possession before sophomore Jaron Broomfield (Bronx, N.Y.) and Stack added fast break finishes. In the first two minutes of this second half Hartford added nine points to the score to take over this game now up one on the Mariners, 45-44. Winters found his rhythm from deep connecting on multiple threes as the teams continued to trade leads through the period. Hartford continued to generate second-chance opportunities. The Hawks built up a seven point lead entering the final four minutes, Mitchell clawed back behind late free throws and a tying layup with seven seconds remaining. The fans could feel the intensity rise and the Mariners were sure they sealed their win. Seven seconds on the clock, Miller took the inbound from Stack and pushed up the floor with pace, turned to shield the defender before stepping back and sinking a deep buzzer-beater over the outstretched hands of the Mariners. With no time on the clock there is a last minute foul by the Hawks to put the Mariners on the line. With all the pressure Troy Butler misses the first and drills the second, yet not enough to claim back this win, the Hawks run away with this victory, 84-83.

Post Game Press:
"I knew this was going to be a tough game on the road," said freshman Ben Miller (Milford, Conn.). "I just stayed composed and made winning plays. Tied up with seven seconds left, as a point guard I knew I had to go make a play and I did just that and came out on top!"

Inside The Numbers:

• Winters and Miller tallied 18 points in tonight's match both to lead the Hawks to the victory, Winters stat breakdown was (6-14 FG, 3-8 3PT, 3-4 FT) grabbing eight rebounds and two assists. Miller was the Hawk to secure the game winner jump shot and his stats sheet read as (6-11 FG, 3-5 3PT, 3-4 FT) along with one rebound and three assists
• Olewiler had a strong performance today at the line and in the paint tallying 14 points, a new season high, (6-10 FG, 0-2 3PT, 2-2 FT) collecting eight boards and three assists.
• Adrian Alicia led the Mariners adding 19 points (5-10 FG, 5-9 3PT, 4-5 FT) with one rebound. Brandon Lee lead Mitchell College in rebounds at nine while knocking down 17 points (8-14 FG, 1-2 FT) along with one assist
• There were 11 lead changes tonight, teams were well-matched on paper, Hartford slightly outscoring the Mariners with points in the paint at 38-36 while Mitchell capitalized on points off turnovers going 18-16 over Hartford.

Up Next:
The Hawks will stay on the road to compete against Western New England University next Tuesday, December 2nd with tip-off at 7:30 P.M.

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