Box Score Newark, Del. – Despite a gritty late second half rally, UMBC saw its three-game winning streak come to an end, as host Delaware defeated UMBC, 70-60 at the Bob Carpenter Center.
The Blue Hens improved to 7-3 on the season, while UMBC fell to 5-3.
UMBC cut an early 17-point second half deficit down to 62-55 with under a minute remaining, but could not complete the comeback effort.
In his first start for the Retrievers, junior forward
Yaw Obeng-Mensah (Toronto, Ont.) provided a spark for UMBC, tying a season-high with 13 points and leading the squad with nine rebounds.
Senior wing
Keondre Kennedy (Atlanta, Ga.) tied Obeng-Mensah with 13 points, while senior guard
Darnell Rogers (Baltimore, Md.) added 12. Kennedy chipped in with seven rebounds and Rogers dished out five assists.
HOW IT HAPPENED
- UMBC got out to an early lead of 13-9 after a pair of Rogers free throws with 13:32 left to play in the first half.
- But the Retrievers would go ice cold from that point forward in the first half, scoring just seven points the rest of the way. UMBC misfired on 12-of-13 shots from behind the arc and 23-of-29 overall in the first 20 minutes.
- Delaware extended a 31-20 halftime lead to 42-25 early in the second half.
- UMBC used a pair of 7-0 runs midway through the half to trim the deficit to 51-44 with 6:47 remaining. But with multiple opportunities to trim the lead further, the Retrievers went scoreless for over five minutes and Delaware stemmed the rally with a 9-0 surge.
- The Retrievers made one final push, scoring eight points in a 22-second span, capped by an Obeng-Mensah steal and Kennedy trey. UMBC cut the deficit to 60-52 with 1:23 remaining and got with 62-55 on a Nathan Johnson trey with 54 seconds left, but UD hit six consecutive free throws to seal the victory.
The Retrievers travel to Washington, D.C. on Wednesday to take on the Georgetown Hoyas. The tip-off time from Capital One Arena is slated for 8:30 p.m. and the game will be broadcast on FS1.
