Four players scored in double figures on Thursday evening, including A.J. Lopez who had a game-high and career-high 19 points to lead the Maine Black Bears to a 78-65 win over Northwestern State University in a non-conference men’s basketball game played at NFU Arena in Jacksonville, Florida. It was the first of three games in three days for Maine in the First Coast Classic (multi-team event) held on the campus of North Florida University.
Both teams would hold a lead in the first half, with Maine holding the biggest at five on a jumper by Kellen Tynes 6:35 into action. A basket by Lopez in the final seconds had the Black Bears clinging to a 34-33 advantage at the break. Northwestern State (1-3) took their final lead of the contest 37-36 on a jumper by Chase Forte in the paint with 17:36 remaining. With the score tied at 40-40, Maine went on a 21-6 run capped off by a three-pointer by Ja’Shonte Wright-McLeish to get some separation at 61-46 with just 7:07 left to go.
Lopez, the transfer from the University of New Hampshire, shot 6-10 from the floor and added three assists and two steals to his point total in the Maine win. Tynes and Wright-McLeish both had 14 points, with Tynes chipping in six assists as well. Filipovity contributed 11 points and nine rebounds, as the Black Bears improve to 2-2. Jamison Epps led Northwestern State in the loss with 16 points and eight rebounds, while Cliff Davis had 14 points and six rebounds. The Demons are out of the Southland Conference. Maine plays Presbyterian College in their second game of the event on Friday at 4 p.m.
Recap by Chris Lessner
