In the first of two road games for the week, the University of Maine men’s basketball team fell to the New Jersey Institute of Technology (NJIT) Highlanders in a hotly contested contest, 86-90 on Monday night. Friday night, the Black Bears fell again, albeit in a dramatically different kind of game as Central Michigan stymied the Black Bear offense, cruising to a 48-76 victory. UMaine fell one last time Sunday morning vs. Valparaiso University 90-73. With the three losses, the Black Bears fell to 0-4 on the season.
Highlanders outlast Black Bears
Monday night reflected what is expected early in the season: up and down, high-tempo, sloppy basketball. Both teams were able to find the basket with relative ease but also proved turnover prone. This especially hurt the Black Bears who gave the ball away 18 times.
The teams battled fairly evenly throughout the game, with neither team pulling away by much. In the first half Maine managed to establish its largest lead of the half at 35-31 after a three pointer from fourth-year forward Zarko Valjarevic as the half was nearing an end, but six straight points by the Highlanders to end the first half gave them a slight 36-35 halftime advantage.
The game continued to be a seesaw contest, though NJIT enjoyed the upper hand in the second half. The Highlanders established their largest lead of the night with 3:18 left, 81-73.
The Black Bears responded, and closed the half to two at 86-84 with 41 seconds to play after a 3-pointer by third-year guard Shaun Lawton. Nevertheless, NJIT was able to make its free-throws and escape the late-game scare.
Lawton scored 20 and third-year forward Ethan Mackey chipped in 18 to lead the charge for the Black Bears. Both players also shot well, with Lawton going 8-9 from the field and Mackey shooting 7-9. Fourth-year forward Zarko Valjarevic also put up strong numbers for the Black Bears, nearly recording a double-double with 14 points and nine rebounds.
Third-year guard Winfield Willis, who scored 20 points and went 7-10 from the field, led the NJIT offense. He received strong contributions from fellow third-year guard Ky Howard, who registered an impressive 17 points, seven rebounds, five assists, and two steals on the night.
UMaine struggles at Central Michigan
The Black Bears were plagued by poor shooting — quite the opposite from Monday’s game. UMaine shot a disappointing 20-54 from the field, a woeful 3-18 from deep and struggled from the charity stripe, 5-13. Though other aspects of their play improved, notably turnovers, the Black Bears cut down their turnovers and actually won that battle 13 to 16.
UMaine got off to a strong start, with an early lead and control of the contest. But the last ten minutes of the first half defined the game as Central Michigan exploded. They finished the half up 44-21.
The second half saw a more competitive Black Bears squad that kept the game from completely spiraling out of control. It was a back and forth contest, with the Central Michigan outscoring the Black Bears just 32-27 in the final 20 minutes of play. Still, the damage had been done and the Black Bears fell 48-76. Besides shooting woes, the Black Bears also had to deal with an unproductive bench which chimed in just 14 points.
Second-year forward Marko Pirovic led the Black Bears with 11 points and six rebounds, the only UMaine player to score in single-digits. Lawton contributed nine points, four steals, and three rebounds.
Central Michigan was led by an impressive performance from third-year forward John Simmons who scored a game-high 17 points thanks to a perfect night from the field, shooting 6-6 from the field including 5-5 from deep. He also snagged five rebounds.
UMaine plays Valparaiso next on Sunday morning to close up its participation in the Central Michigan Tournament.
UMaine falls to Crusaders
The Black Bears struggled Sunday morning, falling to the Valparaiso Crusaders. Second-year forward Alec Peters stole the show, dropping 31 points and grabbing six boards to lead all scorers.
The lone bright spot for the Black Bears was Lawton, who led the team with 16 points and dished out a pair of assists.
The Crusaders jumped out to an early 13-2 lead before missing a shot. They extended their lead to 17-2 before the Black Bears could respond.
First-year guard Kevin Little stopped the bleeding with a 3-pointer. Little had a career-high 15 points including 3-4 shooting from beyond the arc with four rebounds.
Valparaiso cruised to an easy 53-28 halftime advantage.
Calixte got UMaine started in the second half by hitting a lay-up and getting fouled for a three-point play. Peters responded with a three-pointer to kill the UMaine momentum,
The Black Bears kept pace for the second half, outscoring the Crusaders 42-40 in the second frame though it would not be enough to make a game of it.
UMaine returns to the hardwood Nov. 30 when they travel to Northern Illinois University.