Buffalo, N.Y. – The UMBC men's basketball team was unable
to come back from an early deficit in their Sears Bracket Busters
game against MAAC foe Canisius as they fell, 73-66 at the Koessler
Athletic Center
Sophomore forward Chase Plummer
(Plainfield, N.J./St. Patrick) led all players with 24 points and
14 rebounds while junior guards Brian Neller (Red
Bank, N.J./Christian brother Academy) and Ryan Cook (Laurel,
Md./St. Vincent Pallotti/Chestnut Hill College) finished the game
with 14 and 13 points, respectively.
Canisius got out to a 7-2 lead just three and a half minutes in
before UMBC nearly doubled their total over the next six minutes to
tie the game at 14-14 after Plummer got inside for a
layup. However, over the next three minutes, the Golden
Griffins went on a 13-point run and eventually built it to a
game-high 21-point lead with 55 seconds remaining in the first
half.
In the final 32 seconds of the half UMBC made two three-pointers
to cut their deficit to 15 at the break,
43-28. Following a layup by Canisius guard Reggie Groves
that put UMBC down by 21, Plummer hit UMBC's first three of the
night. The Retrievers got possession back for a final
shot when freshman point guard Jerrel Lane (Rahway, N.J./St.
Patrick) came up with a defensive rebound and as the time was
ticking off the clock, Cook threw up a shot from three-point range
that went in as the buzzer sounded.
Canisius guard Alshwan Hymes led all players with 19 points in
the first half after making five 3-pointers. After the
break, though, UMBC limited his attempts and he finished with only
four second half points for 23 in the game.
Those three-pointers seemed to spark the Retrievers out of the
break as UMBC extended their run to 13 unanswered
points. On the first possession of the second half,
Neller hit a three and followed it up with a jumper inside before
Lane got inside for a layup to make it a 43-35 game.
For the majority of the second half UMBC would only trail by
single-digits and got within three points of the Golden Griffins
with 2:16 remaining after the Retrievers made seven-straight free
throws, which later extended to nine-straight, but they would get
no closer as they fell to 4-23 on the season.
Cook finished the game shooting 3-of-5 from three-point
range. Neller added two more treys in the second half,
where he scored 12 of his 14 points. Lane led UMBC with
five assists.
Canisius forward Chris Manhertz had 11 points and 10 rebounds
while guard Harold Washington had 16 points.
UMBC returns for its final home game of the season on Wednesday,
Feb. 22 when they host America East rival Boston University.
