The Maine Black Bears Mens basketball team battled hard and stayed with preseason America East favorites Vermont Thursday night, but ultimately would fall 90-77 in the teams mutual conference opener at the Cross Insurance Center in Bangor.
Vermont (11-5, 1-0) led by as many as 11 points in the opening half, and after a momentary Maine lead halfway through the opening 20 minutes, held a 10 point halftime lead at 46-36.
Maine (4-12, 0-1) would not go quiet however, and kept chipping into the Vermont lead. The Bears got within 62-60 midway though the second half on a Wes Myers layup. Marko Pirovic then gave Maine back the lead on the next possession on a three pointer to make it 63-62.
Vermont answered with a three pointer of their own, before Myers nailed a pair of free throws to make it 65-65. The ‘Cats again took the lead with an unconventional three point play, but Austin Howard tied it back up for the Bears at 68 with a three pointer from the top of the key.
The Catamounts would regain the lead once again and would hold leads of five or six points, until several defensive stops finished off Maine and allowed Vermont to take the biggest lead of 13, which was the final margin of victory.
Myers led Maine with a game-high 30 points and three rebounds. Myers shot 11-16 from the floor and 7-7 from the line. Ryan Bernstein had 12 points, five rebounds, five assists, and two steals. Howard and Aaron Calixte both chipped in 11 points, in the sixth straight loss for the Bears. Maine shot 48 percent from the floor, nailed seven three point baskets, shot 14-15 from the foul line, and had 12 turnovers.
Kurt Stiedl filled up the stat sheet for the visiting Catamounts with 20 points, five rebounds, three assists, three blocks, and two steals. Stiedl also became the programs 35th player to eclipse the 1,000 point mark in the contest. Anthony Lamb and Trae Bell-Haynes both had 15 points, while Darren Payen chipped in 12 as the ‘Cats have now won three in a row. Vermont shot a sizzling 63 percent from the floor, also nailed seven three pointers, shot 11-21 from the line, and also committed 12 turnovers.
Maine returns to action Sunday on the road when they travel to UMBC for a 12 pm tipoff. The game can be seen live on ESPN 3. Vermont returns home for their home America East opener Sunday at 4 pm versus Hartford.
UVM (11-5, 1-0) 46 44- 90
UME (4-12, 0-1) 36 41- 77
