The University of Maine men’s and women’s basketball teams took on the University of Maryland-Baltimore County on Thursday night. The men hosted the Retrievers at home, while the women were in Baltimore.
In the men’s game in the Pit at Memorial Gymnasium in Orono- After Maine shot just 18.7% (6-32) from the floor in the first half and scored just 16 points, Peter Filipovity scored six straight for his team in the final 1:15 in regulation leading the Black Bears to a 62-56 comeback win over UMBC to break a three game losing streak. The Retrievers were unable to build much of a lead at the intermission, as they also struggled shooting (8-29, 27.6%) in the opening 20 minutes of play. Their biggest lead was seven on a layup by Marcus Banks, and they held a slim 20-16 lead at halftime.
Maine took their first lead of the contest 21-20 on a three-pointer by Jaden Clayton 1:36 into the second half. There were nine lead changes in the final 20 minutes. After UMBC tied it 54-54 on a dunk in the paint by Max Lorca-Llloyd, Filipovity pushed his team ahead for good with two free throws 40 seconds later. After a missed jumper by Dion Brown for the Retrievers on the other end, Filipovity knocked down a three-pointer with 30 seconds remaining to make it 59-54. Filipovity and Kristians Feierbergs combined to hit three free throws to ice it in the final 16 seconds.
Filipovity led the way with 13 points, 11 rebounds, and two steals. Kellen Tynes added 12 points and three assists. Feierbergs also got into double figures with 11 points. Clayton and A.J. Lopez chipped in nine points a piece. Maine shot 58% in the second half and put up 46 points, also hitting 6-12 from the three-point arc after they went just 1-10 in the first half. The Black Bears improve to 12-15 and 4-8 in America East. Brown led UMBC with 17 points and 14 rebounds, while Banks finished with 16 points. The Retrievers fall to 9-19 and 4-9 in conference play.
In the women’s game at Chesapeake Employers Insurance Arena in Baltimore- Maine was unable to hold a 12 point first half lead and a 10 point halftime advantage, as UMBC outscored the Black Bears 43-25 in the second half to rally for a 67-59 win. The Retrievers started strong, taking a 14-11 lead after one quarter. Maine came alive in the second, and outscored UMBC 23-10. Anne Simon had 15 points in the quarter (3 three-pointers), and a Sarah Talon basket capped off a 16-4 run to give them their largest lead 34-22. They led 34-24 at the break.
UMBC responded out of the locker room, starting the third quarter on a 16-2 spurt of their own to take a four point lead. Simon hit two free throws late in the period to slice the deficit to a pair heading to the fourth. With the Retrievers still leading by two with 8:35 to play, they would go on a 7-0 run to take their biggest lead 55-46 with 5:51 remaining. Maine would only get as close as five the rest of the way, as they have their six game win streak snapped.
Simon led the way in the loss with a game-high 22 points, 10 rebounds, and three assists. Adrianna Smith also had a double double with 16 points, 10 rebounds, three assists, and three steals. Talon and Olivia Rockwood added eight points a piece. Maine shot just 35% for the game, and 6-24 (25%) from the three-point arc in falling to 18-9 and 11-2 in America East. Anna Blount had 17 points and nine rebounds for UMBC. Jordon Lewis added 12, and Jaden Walker had 11 points. The Retrievers get some payback after a 29 point loss (76-47) to the Black Bears back on January 18 in Orono, and improve their record to 9-17 and 5-9 in the conference. Maine had a chance to take over first place in the league by themselves after Albany lost 67-35 to Vermont Thursday night, but was unable to get that done as the teams are now still tied at the top.
The Maine basketball teams are back in action on Saturday afternoon against the New Jersey Institute of Technology (NJIT). The men host the Highlanders in the Pit at 2 p.m., while the women are scheduled to tip-off at the same time down in Newark, NJ.
Recaps by Chris Lessner
