The University of Maine men’s and women’s basketball teams faced off against the New Jersey Institute of Technology on Saturday in America East action. The women were at home trying to break a two game losing streak, while the men were facing the Highlanders on the road.
In the women’s game in the Pit at Memorial Gymnasium in Orono- A layup by Kenna Squier with 8:03 left in the fourth quarter pushed NJIT ahead for good in a 56-54 victory over Maine. The Black Bears started well with the first four points on two free throws by Adrianna Smith and a layup by Paula Gallego, but then went ice cold. The Highlanders went on a 16-2 run finished off by a three-pointer from Alejandra Zuniga and would lead 16-8 after one quarter. The hosts started to get the shots to drop in the second. After trailing by eight at 20-12, they finished the first half on a 17-4 spurt that included a pair of three-pointers by Caroline Bornemann and five points from Jaycie Christopher that also included a three-pointer as the Black Bears had a 29-24 halftime advantage. A low scoring third quarter saw NJIT outscoring cold shooting Maine 11-6 and the game was tied at 35 heading to the fourth. The last lead for the Bears was off the hand of Olivia Rockwood on a three-pointer with 8:24 left at 40-39. Squier then scored the layup 21 seconds later and the Highlanders never trailed again. Maine would get within three on a couple of occasions after trailing by seven, the last time on a Rockwood three-pointer with 38 seconds remaining. After Zuniga missed a layup for NJIT, the Black Bears had one more chance to tie it. The Highlanders though, who hadn’t committed any fouls in the quarter to that point, smartly committed three in a row to run the clock down to just under six seconds. Bornemann did get a three-pointer up that was no good, and Smith was fouled in the rebounding action and went to the foul line with just one tenth of a second remaining. Smith made the first, and then intentionally missed the second trying to get a tip but that was unsuccessful as Maine dropped their third straight game. Smith led the way in the loss with 23 points and eight rebounds. Rockwood had 10 points, while Bornemann and Gallego finished with eight points and four rebounds each. Zuniga led NJIT in the victory with 16 points. Squier had 11 points and nine rebounds. Aria Meyers and Trinity Williams also contributed 10 points a piece. The Highlanders improve to 12-12, 7-5 in America East.
In the men’s game at the NJIT Wellness and Events Center in Newark, New Jersey- NJIT put five players in double figures, outrebounded Maine 39-24, and held the Black Bears to 2-16 from the three-point line adding up to a 65-50 Highlanders victory. Maine after trailing early on would jump into the lead about halfway through the first half using a 10-0 run helped by a layup and jumper by Kellen Tynes and a three-pointer by Jaden Clayton for a 16-11 advantage. NJIT would bounce back though, outscoring the visitors 18-5 over the remaining 9:36 to take a 29-21 advantage into halftime. The game was won in the first 5:50 of the second half, as the Highlanders exploded going on a run of 17-2 to open up a 46-23 lead. That lead would grow to as many as 27. The Black Bears used a 14-2 run over the final 5:41 to make the final score respectable. Tynes was the only double digit scorer in the Maine loss with 14 points, four rebounds, and four steals. Clayton finished with nine points, and Peter Filipovity came off the bench to chip in seven points. Kevin Osawe led the five players in double figures for NJIT with 14 points and eight rebounds. Kjell de Graaf had 13 points and eight rebounds, Paul McMillan IV had 11 points, and both Adam Hess and Raheim Sullivan added 10 points a piece. The Highlanders improve to 7-17, 4-7 in conference play.
The Maine women’s team fell to 12-12, 8-4 in America East with their loss while the men are now 10-15, 4-8. The lady Black Bears have a makeup game on Monday at 12 p.m. as they head to Durham to battle UNH. The men’s team is in the Pit next Saturday at 2 p.m. to face Albany.
Recaps by Chris Lessner
Women’s Box Score
NJIT (12-12, 7-5) 16 8 11 21- 56
UMAI (12-12, 8-4) 8 21 6 19- 54
Rebounds- NJIT 32, Maine 31
Free throws- NJIT 8-10, Maine 7-10
Turnovers- NJIT 17, Maine 12
Three-pointers- NJIT: Zuniga 2, Meyers 2/ Maine: Bornemann 2, Rockwood 2, Christopher
Men’s Box Score
UMAI (10-15, 4-8) 21 29- 50
NJIT (7-17, 4-7) 29 36- 65
Rebounds- Maine 24, NJIT 39
Free throws- Maine 6-13, NJIT 12-14
Turnovers- Maine 13, NJIT 18
Three-pointers- Maine: Clayton, Turgut/ NJIT: Hess 2, Sullivan 2, Anderson
