BEVERLY, Mass.  - The Hartford men's basketball team fell just short on Saturday falling to #14 Endicott College by a 79-72 final. 

Rapid Recap:

• The Hawks flew ahead by a 12-4 start with seven early points going for junior Kyle Winters (Corte Madera, Calif.). Hartford continued to fly as a 7-2 run capped off by a layup by junior Leonard Pelzer (Berlin, Germany) kept the visitors in front 21-10. Junior Kaosi Chijioke (Suwanee, Ga.) knocked down a three to start another 8-1 as the lead was 29-13 with 11:22 to play in the first half. The Gulls began to chip away getting the deficit all the way down to six points with 4:53 to play in the first half. Winters stayed hot scoring seven more points including a last second jumper to give Hartford a 42-33 lead into the break. 
• Winters opened up the second half with five-straight points to get the lead back to 14 points. The lead stayed consistent over the next seven minutes before the Gulls started to slowly get the momentum. The lead was cut to single digits with 9:05 to play. Winters continued to score late but the lead was down to just a single point with 4:33 left. Chijioke made two clutch baskets down the stretch, but Endicott continued to answer. The Gulls would take the lead after a controversial travel was called as Andrew Mitchell knocked down a three. Endicott would close things out with free throws to win by the 79-72 final. 

Inside The Numbers:

• Winters balled out with a career-high 41 points (16-26 FG, 7-12 3PT, 2-2 FT) to go with four assists, three rebounds and a steal. Chijioke added 13 points (5-10 FG, 2-2 3PT, 1-2 FT), seven rebounds and a pair of blocks. Pelzer tallied six points (2-3 FG, 2-2 FT), three boards, two assists and a pair of blocks in the loss. 
• Marcus Montagnino led the Gulls with 29 points (8-17 FG, 3-4 3PT, 10-12 FT), six rebounds and four steals. Elijah Kinney added 25 points (10-20 FG, 1-4 3PT, 4-6 FT) and 15 rebounds. 
• Endicott had the benefit of a favorable whistle going 17-22 from the free throw line while the Hawks only went 7-8 from the charity stripe. 
• The Hawks Conference of New England (CNE) playoff hopes will come down to next Saturday as Hartford travels to UNE in a win and you are in game. 

Up Next:
The Hawks will travel to the University of New England next Saturday for a CNE Playoff bid.  

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