Baltimore - In his 100th career game, UMBC senior forward Darryl Proctor (District Heights, Md.) posted his 32nd career double-double with 17 points and 10 rebounds, as he led the Retrievers to a 67-56 win over Central Connecticut State before 2,042 fans at the RAC Arena.
UMBC, which had a nine-game home winning streak snapped last Wednesday, improved to 5-3 on the campaign and have still captured 21 of its last 24 games at home. The Blue Devils entered the game on a four-game winning streak and left with a mark of 4-4.
The hosts overcame a poor shooting first half and hit 14 of 23 attempts (60.9 percent) after intermission, while holding CCSU to 38.1 percent (24 of 63) for the game.
Proctor, named the America East Player of the Game, and classmate senior guard Jay Greene (Whitehall, Pa.) keyed a late 12-2 run which spurred UMBC to the victory. Central’s Shemik Thompson tied the game for the sixth and final time at 45-45 on a layup with 7:47 remaining. But Proctor countered with a lay-in on the next possession, and, after a Thompson missed jumper, Greene buried a three-pointer from the top of the key. The point guard then matched Joe Seymore's layup with a short jumper and after Proctor hit a baseline jumper, Greene completed the surge with a trifecta from the left wing to give the Retrievers a 57-47 advantage with 2:52 remaining.
After UMBC stretched the lead to 60-47, Seymore capped a quick 7-0 burst with a banked three-pointer from 27 feet to trim the Central deficit to 60-54 with 1:15 to play. But the Retrievers sank seven of eight free throws to close out the contest.
After a two-point first half, Greene finished with 14 points, hitting three of four from long range after intermission. He also had five assists and no turnovers in all 40 minutes of action. Junior forward Justin Fry (New Bloomfield, Pa.) scored a career high 16 points, hitting half of his 12 attempts from the floor and all four from the stripe.
Central sophomore forward Ken Horton led all scorers with 21 points and also posted a double-double with 10 caroms. Seymore added 13 points, but hit just five of 17 shots from the field.
UMBC evened the all-time series at 15-all, and snapped a six game slide to the Blue Devils. Proctor has scored in double figures in a career-high 16 consecutive games, while Greene has hit at least two from behind the arc in all eight games to date.
The Retrievers travel to third-ranked Pittsburgh on Saturday. The Panthers will be the highest-ranked team that UMBC has faced in 23 years of NCAA Division I competition.
